Women Airforce Service Pilots
(WASP)
. III. Uniforms
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-. Insignia
-. Service and Dress Uniform
-. Work and Flight Attire
-. Miscellaneous
-. Dress Regulations
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Service and Dress Uniform
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WAFS Uniforms
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Civilian employees working for the Army Air Forces were not required to wear any type of distinctive dress. However, Nancy Love insisted on having her girls uniformed to receive a better attentiveness in public and to boost the moral of her pilots with providing a smart uniform. She ordered a local tailoring shop in Wilmington, Delaware to procure distinctive uniforms for WAFS personnel. These uniforms had to be purchased privately by the WAFS.
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Service and Dress Uniform
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Picture Source: Florene Miller and Teresa James, US Air Force Photograph ..... The Service and Dress Uniform consisted of a belted jacket with matching six-gore skirt or trousers made of grayish-green wool serge.
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It was worn with a piped garrison cap made of the same fabric. The garrison cap was in the same style as the men’s garrison caps but had the front curtain fold on the left side. 
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The single breasted jacket was closed with four gray plastic buttons. It had two upper and two lower patch pockets with buttoned pointed flaps. The jacket was equipped with a cloth belt and shoulder loops. Additionally, it had sleeve stripes in dark grayish-green color. 
..... Picture Source: Brochure: Who's Who & What is What in the Women's Civilian Volunteer Organizations
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The General Army Airforces Headquarters patch was worn on the upper left sleeve. A half-circle tab with the letters WAFS embroidered in blue was sewn below the AAF patch.

Above the left breast pocket, the Air Transport Command / Ferrying Division (ATC/FD) wings were worn and the ATC/FD disk on the shoulder loops.

A small pair of wings with the vertical silver propeller, as used by the Air Corps, were pinned on the lapels of the jacket and on the left front of the garrison cap. 

... Picture Source: Nancy Love, WASP Photograph Collection - TWU Library
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Picture Source: From left to right: Evelyn, Sharp, Bernice Batton and Barbara Erickson, U.S. Air Force photo
.... The grayish-green WAFS uniform was worn with a khaki shirt for duty and a white shirt for formal occasions. The collar of the shirt was worn open over the uniform jacket.

Brown oxford shoes or plain brown pumps (if the skirt was worn), brown leather gloves and a brown leather purse completed the outfit. 

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WAFS Overcoat
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Pciture Source: WAFS Esther Nelson in Newcastle AAB, Wilmington, Delaware, WASP Photograph Collection - TWU online library .... The gray woolen overcoat with buttoned-in lining was double-breasted and was equipped with four pairs of gray plastic buttons. The coat had a half belt on the back. It could be worn with a white scarf.
Picture Source: Esther Nelson and Esther Manning at Bell Aircraft Factory, Buffalo, New York. - WASP Photograph Collection - TWU online library
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WTFD and Early WASP Uniforms
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WTFD and early WASP Trainees Uniform
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Like the WAFS, WFTD members were civilian employees of the Army Air Forces. Therefore, they were not issued official Army uniforms but had to wear civilian clothes. However, when the first class approached graduation, requests about an official uniform for the WFTD arose. 
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To keep the costs for the WFTD trainees low, it was decided that they should wear private purchased khaki slacks with a short-sleeved white shirt for graduation. The collar of the shirt was worn open and a men’s khaki garrison cap without piping completed the outfit. 
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Also, the WASP trainees wore this uniform nicknamed "General's White" until the Santiago Blue WASP uniform was introduced.



 
 

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Copyright by BLITZKRIEGBABY
Note:  WASP Wings on this outfit
were only worn on Graduation Day
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Copyright by BLITZKRIEGBABY
v... The white shirt with khaki slacks and cap combination could be also worn with the A-2 leather jackets. 
 

Picture Source: Atterbury-Bakalar Air Museum

On the black and white picture taken at Avenger Field, Sweetwater, Texas, in 1944 are (from left to right) Patricia Nethercutt, Beryl Owens, Jimmie Parker, unknown, Jeanne L. Norbeck, and Frances Opavski.

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Graduated WASP Uniforms
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After graduation, WASP assigned to the ATC/FD wore civilian clothes at first. Later, the ATC/FD ordered to wear Army officer's "pinks and greens". The "pinks and greens" consisted of combinations of light drab (pink) or dark olive drab trousers and light drab (pink) or dark olive drab shirts. A tan or olive drab tie was worn with the shirt and webbing belts in the same colors were worn with the trouses. A light drab (pink)or a dark olive drab  men's garrison cap with gold-black officer's piping completed the outfit.

The following insignia were worn with this uniform. The AAF General Headquarter's patch was sewn on the upper left sleeve of the shirts. The WASP wings were worn above the left breast pocket and a small pair of wings with the vertical silver propeller, as used by the Air Corps, were pinned on the lapels of the jacket and on the left front of the garrison cap. 
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Copyright by BLITZKRIEGBABY
Copyright by BLITZKRIEGBABY
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Copyright by BLITZKRIEGBABY
Copyright by BLITZKRIEGBABY
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Graduated WASP Summer Uniform

During warm weather, graduated WASP wore khaki shirt and khaki trousers. A men's khaki garrison cap with gold-black officer's piping could be worn with this outfit. 

The Army Airforce General Headquarter's patch was sewn on the upper left sleeve and the WASP wings were worn above the left breast pocket.

Pictures also show  WAFS wearing khaki shirts and trousers but with ATC/FD wings above the breast pocket.

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Copyright by BLITZKRIEGBABY
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WASP - Santiago Blue Dress Uniform
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Copyright by BLITZKRIEGBABY
WASP Dress Uniform
.v Two very detailed pictures of the Santiago Blue Dress Uniform worn by WASP Jeanne Lewellen Norbeck can be found at: 

Atterbury Bakalar Air Museum

Santiago Blue Dress Uniform, Pic-1

Santiago Blue Dress Uniform, Pic-2

Some pictures show WASP wearing their uniform improperly. For example, not using the belt with the long jacket, having the shirt collar open and outside the jacket or wearing the long jacket with the slacks which were only intended to be worn with the battle dress jacket.

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Copyright by BLITZKRIEGBABY
Improperly worn Uniform 
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continue to:
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Insignia
Service and Dress Uniform
Work and Flight Attire
Miscellaneous
Dress Regulations
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[ I. Development ]..[ II. Facts about the WASP ]..[ III. Uniforms ]..[ IV. Sources ]
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