About the Book
She flew the swift P-51 and the capricious P-38, but the heavy, four-engine B-17 bomber and C-54 transport were her forte. This is the story of Nancy Harkness Love who, early in World War II, recruited and led the first group of twenty-eight women to fly military aircraft for the U.S. Army.When the United States entered World War II, the Army needed pilots to transport or "ferry" its combat-bound aircraft across the United States for overseas deployment and its trainer airplanes to flight training bases. Male pilots were in short supply, so into this vacuum stepped Nancy Love and her Women's Auxiliary Ferrying Squadron (WAFS). Initially the Army implemented both the WAFS program and Jacqueline Cochran's more ambitious plan to train women to do many of the military's flight-related jobs stateside. By 1943, General Hap Arnold decided to combine the women's programs and formed the Women Airforce Service Pilots (WASP), with Cochran as the Director of Women Pilots. Love was named the Executive for WASP.Nancy Love advised the Ferrying Division, which was part of the Air Transport Command, as to the best use of their civilian WASP ferry pilots.
She supervised their allocation and air-training program. By example, Love won the right for women ferry pilots to transition into increasingly more complex airplanes. She checked out on twenty-three different military aircraft and became the first woman to fly several of them, including the B-17 Flying Fortress. Her World War II career ended on a high note: following a general's orders, she piloted a giant C-54 Army transport over the fabled China-Burma-India "Hump," the crucial airlift route over the Himalayas.Young women serving today as combat pilots owe much to Love for creating the opportunity for women to serve. Now author Sarah Byrn Rickman, aviation historian, presents the first full-length biography of Nancy Love and her role in the WAFS and WASP programs. Her book will appeal to all with a love of flight.
About the Author :
SARAH BYRN RICKMAN is a former journalist with a Masters in Creative Writing. Her freelance job and research with the International Women's Air and Space Museum produced first an award-winning WASP novel, Flight from Fear, followed by The Originals: The Women's Auxiliary Ferrying Squadron of World War II. She lives in Centerville, Ohio.
Review :
"A trailblazing figure for women's service in the military along with her rival Jacqueline Cochran, Nancy Love was a dedicated and determined aviation enthusiast and served admirably as the Executive for the unified women's programs under the name Women Airforce Service Pilots (WASP). Extensive notes, a glossary of military and airplane terms, and an index round out this captivating biography of a truly extraordinary woman aviator."--Midwest Book Review
"Rickman does a very good job of revealing Love's experiences during the war, and puts them into the context of the times and what other women were doing. . . . [This] is a well researched, well written, and very interesting book. It helps to highlight a woman who despite her important prewar and wartime roles has often been forgotten in discussions of 'famous' aviation women. Rickman's terrific new book has assured she will not be forgotten again."--Military History of the West
"The book is not high on emotion, but Nancy wasn't either, with the few expressions of grief or fear being when members of her original group of 25 pilots died in accidents. It is, however, a great tribute to a person who used her passion for aviation and organizational skills to make a place for women who wanted to serve their country as pilots during WWII."--Military
"The story of Nancy Harkness Love is one that deserves to be told, not just for her individual accomplishments as a pioneering female pilot but also for the legacy she left. As a chronicle of Nancy Love's individual accomplishments, Sarah Byrn Rickman's Nancy Love and the WASP Ferry Pilots of World War II is a useful source. It is a well-researched and engagingly written story of the course of Love's life."-H-WAR
"This is an intimate account of an accomplished aviatrix and visionary pioneer whose contributions to women in military aviation were heretofore not fully acknowledged. Often overshadowed when referenced in comparison to Jackie Cochran, Nancy Love made her own indelible mark on history. Her story, insightfully chronicled and reverently told, is a must-read for all who relish courage, tenacity, and a fearless desire to serve our nation in time of its greatest need. Today's military pilots owe her a debt of gratitude for breaking the ground that allowed all members of future generations to serve."--Brig. Gen. Linda K. McTague, Air National Guard "Nancy Love and the women she led were my role models. Reading this book, her life story, I found myself comparing yesterday's flying challenges and excitements with my own experiences. I could feel the essence of Nancy's life: her love of flying, her leadership, her focus on the mission. I wanted to do what she was doing: flying, leading, making a contribution to our country's future. Without her contributions, and those of other women pilots of her time, my generation would not have had the opportunities of military flying and spaceflight. I feel a sisterhood with Nancy Harkness Love, and am grateful to share in her experiences through this book."--Col. Eileen M. Collins, U.S. Air Force (Ret.), First Woman Space Shuttle Pilot and Commander
"For anyone interested in a wonderful story of aviation or wanting to know more about this famous woman, this book is a must-read."--Peggy Chabrian, President/Founder, Women in Aviation, International
"This is an 'edge of your seat' story even if you know the outcome. Sarah Byrn Rickman brings Nancy Love and Jackie Cochran back to life, and she re-creates their historical clash as the drama that it was, making it as real as if it were happening today. It's like observing a boxing match, one that evenly pits Nancy's 'ladylike' personality against Jackie's 'brash' one. While only one could 'win, ' Sarah's portrayal of how these women 'played the game' is worthy of the best-seller list!"--Commander Trish Beckman, U.S. Navy (Ret.)
"Sarah Rickman tells this story in the exciting style of the journalist she once was. ... The writing is so fresh, you often have the sense that you are discovering new things about Love right along with the author. ... Rickman has done her subject justice; this is a book rich in insight and opportunity."--From the Foreword by Deborah G. Douglas, Curator, Massachusetts Institute of Technology Museum
