Letter, Jacqueline Cochran to WASPs Regarding Disbandment

HAM State the 12 October 1944 WASPS of 43-W-3 Biggs Field El Paso, Texas Dear Members of the 43-W-3 Class, Such a letter as I received from you fills me with the utmost gratitude - gratitude that such girls as you are a pest of the WASP organization. And I am proud too, of the outstanding record you have made for yourselves in a field which was untried and in which few placed sufficient confidence in your ability. I felt sure when this organization was in its infaney that, given an opportunity, women could prove themselves capable in any situation they might be called upon to face, and you girls have corroborated my statement many times over. Thus it is with deep regret that I found it necessary to recommend inactivation of the entire program, for I know how sorry you girls will be to have to divorce yourselves from Army flying. But how grateful we can be to know that our disbandment is the result of unexpectedly low combat losses; and how great is our satisfaction to know that over 1,000 women have learned to fly "the Army way". Even after the WASP program has become a matter of history I want to keep in touch with all of you, and you will always know that my best wishes and personal regards are yours. Sincerely, s Jacqueline Cochran Director of Women Pilots