Wings of Gold: The Story of the First Women Naval Aviators

Journalist and pilot Weintraub debuts with a meticulous and often infuriating chronicle of the obstacles faced by the first six women to earn their naval aviation wings in the early 1970s. Barbara Rainey, the daughter of a naval commander, was the first to qualify as a Navy jet pilot. Joellen Oslund became the U.S. military’s first female helicopter pilot. Rosemary Mariner was the first woman to fly a tactical jet, the first to command an aviation squadron, and one of the first to serve on a Navy warship. Even though they made it through the same pilot training course as male aviators, they were not allowed to land or take off from aircraft carriers or to fly combat missions. Weintraub exhaustively documents the battle to pass—over the objections of the commanders of all four branches of the military—a 1991 bill that lifted the ban on women serving in combat, and details the fallout from the Tailhook sexual assault scandal. Aggravating details abound—Weintraub notes that in the ’70s, “female officer candidates had to wear skirts and heels, even when marching in the snow”—as does evidence of these pioneering women’s bravery and determination. This is a fine-grained look at a critical battle in the fight for gender equality. (Dec.)