"If you have a daughter, teach her to fly"

"If you have a daughter, teach her to fly," the Women Airforce Service Pilots (WASP) of World War II sang at times to build morale. On March 10, Congress gave the WASP the Congressional Gold Medal, acknowledging these women's service to their country and the role they played in paving the way for future generations of women pilots.

The song was referenced at the Capitol, filled to the brim with WASP, family and friends of deceased WASP, and other notables at the presentation ceremony. Presenting the award were original bill sponsors Sen. Barbara Mikulski, Reps. Susan Davis and Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, and Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchinson. The Congressional Gold Medal is the highest award the United States Congress can bestow on a civilian.

More than 1,100 Women Airforce Service Pilots (WASP) served in World War II, and more than 23,000 other women applied for the opportunity to do the same. Facing perceptions of gender inequality and the designation of non-military personnel, as well as financial difficulties, these women would become the first women to fly military aircraft for the United States.

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