The Spitfire Girls(94)
They burst out laughing and May thought of her own mother. She’d never said a curse word in front of her children in her lifetime, and she’d never been further than an hour’s drive from their home; whereas May had seen the length and breadth of their country from the air.
She smiled at Ruby. It was strange how much life had evolved, but she wouldn’t have changed hers for the world. And for the first time in years, she couldn’t wait to go home again, but this time with Ben proudly by her side.
CHAPTER THIRTY
TEXAS, 1944
LIZZIE
Lizzie had never struggled so much to keep her emotions in check, but as she stood on the stage to address the WASPs seated in front of her, she could barely contain herself. This was her final graduation. No more women would ever complete her programme. She’d lost the fight; they’d only have a week or so of actual flying as fully fledged WASPs, and all she could do was give these incredible women the send-off they deserved.
‘This is a very special day for all of us, not least the incredible pilots who are graduating today,’ Lizzie said, staring straight ahead despite the tears that threatened to fall. She refused to give in to them, holding her head high. ‘What we have done, the great service the WASPs have given our country, is something that we must all be incredibly proud of. You, all of you, are my greatest achievement by far, and nothing I’ve done before, or will ever do in the future, will come close to this. I may have been the starting point for this programme, but I am a very small part of what we have become.’ She glanced over at Jackson, resplendent in his full uniform. He was watching her so intently that it only made her all the more emotional. She took a deep, shaky breath. ‘As you know, this programme also couldn’t have happened without the support of General Arnold, the commander of the Army Air Forces, who has made the effort to be here with us today.’ She looked at Hap and smiled, pleased to have him with her on this final day. He had shown unwavering support for women pilots since the beginning, and she couldn’t blame him for Congress voting against them or their programme being shut down. There was, after all, only so much one man could be expected to do. ‘But before I step aside for my good friend and mentor, I would like to share some statistics with you. As we all know, there has been much said about us that is untrue and downright mortifying, and I want to set the record straight.’
Lizzie looked down at the notes in her hand. Until now she’d been speaking from the heart, but she wanted to get these facts and figures correct. There was a journalist in attendance to witness the last ceremony, and her hope was that he would at least report correctly when he wrote his story.
‘Since the women’s pilot programme began, we have had an astonishing twenty-five thousand applicants. As you know, the acceptance process was tough, and as such we accepted fewer than two thousand women. We have had one thousand one hundred and two women serving as WASPs, including the twenty-eight women fliers in Nancy Love’s original WAFs squadron.’ Lizzie looked at the strong, beautiful faces staring back at her and bravely continued. ‘Thirty-eight women pilots died while serving our country, and I would like to take a moment to remember those incredible women. They died in the line of duty, and I know they will never, ever be forgotten.’ She placed her hand on her heart and shut her eyes for a moment, hoping the others would do the same. When she opened them and saw every single head bowed, a single tear slipped from the corner of her eye. She’d started out to set the sky ablaze with women pilots, and somehow, through the grace of God, she’d done it, which was why today was so heartbreakingly painful for her.
‘Women ferry pilots have flown seventy-seven kinds of planes and flown some sixty million miles, and one thing it has shown me is that women truly can do anything they set their minds to.’ She raised her voice, wanting this to be the part they remembered. ‘We are told as little girls what our expectations should be, and it’s made abundantly clear what our limitations are, but I’m standing here today to tell you that there are no limitations for women, or at least not in the sky. You don’t need to be a burly six-foot man to fly an enormous four-engine bomber, but you do need a brain and single-minded determination. It’s no wonder men feel threatened by us, instead of seeing us as their sisters in arms.’ She paused again. ‘But we are different from our male counterparts, and we should be proud of our differences. As women, we feel deep compassion and gratitude, and we know how important our role is. I for one know that I first embarked on this challenge to prove to myself and to my dear father exactly what I was capable of, but I quickly discovered that what I was doing was so much bigger than that.’ She smiled. ‘I’ve heard stories of many women writing notes and leaving them in the aircrafts as they deliver them, wishing the intended combat pilot good luck. I’ve had male pilots report back that seeing us arrive, ferrying planes to them, has given them hope. Many of them love us, although they didn’t necessarily in the beginning, and they scribble images of our little “Fifi” icon as they wait to fly. As women, we should never doubt the impact we’ve had on our great country.’
The women all clapped, some stamping their feet, and Lizzie beamed back, unable to suppress the huge smile any more than she’d been able prevent tears earlier. She held her daddy’s medal in her palm as she spoke, drawing on his strength, remembering him as she stood before the gathered crowd.