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Fly Girl

The amazing story of the women pilots of World War II  

Art by Randy Pollak

Slideshow

CHARACTERS

*Starred characters have larger speaking parts.

  • *Narrators 1, 2, 3 (N1, N2, N3
  • Edward R. Murrow, a reporter
  • *Margie Canfield, a 19-year-old female pilot 
  • *Mom and *Dad, Margie’s parents 
  • Jackie Cochran, a famous female pilot, head of the WASPs
  • *Nell, a female pilot 
  • Crowd, to be read by a group 
  • Instructor, a male flight teacher  
  • General Arnold, Commanding General of the Army Air Force

The underlined characters are real people.

SCENE 1

July 1943
Wichita, Kansas

N1: It’s July 1943. The United States is fighting in World War II

N2: Because of the war, food and other products are in short supply

N3: Americans are doing whatever they can to help.

N1: Families are growing their own vegetables.

N2: Kids are gathering metal scraps to be used to help build ships and planes.

N3: Margie’s mom enters the kitchen holding beans from her garden. She turns on the radio

Edward R. Murrow (voice-over): The American, Canadian, and British troops continue to make gains. But we must not underestimate what is to come from the Germans!

N1: Margie runs in holding a copy of Life magazine.

Margie: Mom! Mom! Girls are flying military planes

N2: Margie reads from the article

Margie (reading): Each month, more female pilots complete their training.

Mom: Well, isn’t that something

N3: Dad walks in carrying a box of tin scraps

Dad: Anything else for the scrap bin? Our military needs all the metal it can get.

N1: Mom hands him a few crushed cans

Margie: Look at this, Dad. Women pilots are testing planes so more men can fight overseas. I want to do it!

Dad: Absolutely not.

N2: He walks out.

Margie: What was that about

N3: Mom takes a book from a shelf. She pulls out an old photo of a young woman standing next to an airplane

Margie: Who is this

Mom: Your father’s sister.

Margie: Aunt Margaret? The one I’m named after

Mom: That’s right. Flying was her passion.

Margie: I . . . I had no idea

Mom: She died in a plane crash just before you were born. Your father hates talking about it

N1: Margie stares at the photo

Margie: She seems so happy

N2: Margie looks up

Margie: Mom, I want to do more for the war effort than just collect cans

Mom: Don’t you need a pilot’s license?

Margie: I can take lessons at the airport

N3: Margie grabs her mother’s hands

Margie: Please, Mom. I can do this!

SCENE 2

September 1943 ★ 

Sweetwater, Texas

N1: Margie stands in the sun with 100 other young women

Jackie Cochran: You are all here because you want to be WASPsWomen Airforce Service Pilots. This six-month training program is hard. Not all of you will make it

N2: A woman leans over to Margie

Nell (whispering): Gee, thanks for the encouragement

N3: Margie laughs quietly.

Cochran: You will learn to fly every type of aircraft. Now, there are men out there who think you can’t do it. Well, I’m here to tell you that if you work hard, you can.

Crowd: Woooo!

N1: Margie turns to Nell.

Margie: How long have you been flying

Nell: Six years. I’m an instructor in Michigan. You?

Margie (nervously): I just got my license

Nell: Stick with me. You’ll be all right.

 

Build Knowledge

On the Home Front

Americans stepped up to help at home during World War II. Here’s how.

Everett Collection Historical/Alamy Stock Photo (Riveters, Garden); Stocktrek Images, Inc./Alamy Stock Photo (Poster)

Women at Work

Many men went overseas to fight. So millions of women filled their jobs. They became shipbuilders, welders, and engineers. Many of these positions were never available to them before.

Universal History Archive/UIG via Getty Images

Scrap Drives  

Important materials were in short supply because of the war. So children collected rubber and metal scraps. These scraps could be used to build tanks, ships, and planes for the military

 Everett Collection Historical/Alamy Stock Photo (Garden); IanDagnall Computing/Alamy Stock Photo (Poster)

Victory Gardens  

Food was rationed, or limited, during the war. So many families grew and canned their own vegetables. This helped make sure there was enough food for U.S. soldiers fighting around the world.

SCENE 3

January 1944 ★ 

Sweetwater, Texas

N2: Margie and the other trainees are wearing giant jumpsuits

Nell: Are we ever going to get flight suits that fit us?

Margie: Not likely. The Army never expected women to be flying their planes

N3: An instructor comes over.

Instructor: Canfield! You’re with me today. We’re going up in the BT-13. This plane is big, heavy, and fast. Sure you can handle it, little lady?

N1: Margie grabs her flight gear

Margie (under her breath): Yes, this little lady can handle it.

N2: When they reach the plane, Margie walks up the wing and hops into the front seat. The instructor sits behind her with separate controls.

N3: Margie flips the starter switch

N1: The plane climbs into the air

Instructor: Very good. Now give me some spins

N2: Margie dives. The plane jerks to the side. The instructor grabs the controls

Instructor: Easy

N3: Margie shakes her head, disappointed

Instructor: Your spins stink, Canfield! But with practice, you’ll get there.

SCENE 4

March 1944 ★ 

Sweetwater, Texas

N1: Margie and the other pilots gather for graduation

N2: General Arnold speaks to the graduates and their families

General Arnold: At first, I was skeptical. Could a young woman handle the controls of a fighter plane? But now I know the answer is yes

Crowd: Hear! hear

Arnold: The WASPs are doing important jobs. They fly airplanes to bases for repairs. They run practice drills. They test new planes. The WASPs are helping us win the war

Crowd: Hooray!

N3: Margie finds her mother in the crowd. As they hug, Margie looks over her mom’s shoulder.

Margie: Dad didn’t come

Mom: He just . . . couldn’t, honey

Margie: Being a pilot has taught me that I can’t live my life in fear. If I never take any risks, I’ll never grow into the person I know I can be. I wish Dad could understand that.

N1: Mom pulls the old photograph of Aunt Margaret from her purse

Mom: Here. Take this. It will make me feel better knowing she’s with you in the air

N2: Margie tucks the photo into her shirt pocket.

Margie: She’ll keep me safe.

SCENE 5

April 1944 ★ 

Wichita, Kansas

N3: Mom sits on the porch reading a letter from Margie. Dad stands behind her, listening.

Mom (reading): Dear Mom and Dad, Nell and I were both assigned to an airfield in Dallas. We get up at 5 a.m., then fly for several hours

N1: Dad sits down next to Mom.

Mom (reading): Yesterday two male pilots refused to ride with me. They said I should be at home cooking and sewing

N2: Dad puts his arm around Mom.

Mom (reading): Tomorrow I’m picking up a B-25 in California and flying it to a base so it can go overseas. I can’t tell you where. That’s top secret!

N3: Dad smiles.

Dad: She reminds me of Margaret.

Mom: I know she does.

 United States Air Force Museum

On a Mission  
WASP pilots flew planes from factories to military bases. This freed up male pilots to fight overseas. (Women were not allowed in combat at the time.)

SCENE 6

July 1944 ★ 

The skies over New Mexico

N1: Margie and Nell are in the cockpit of a large military plane

N2: Margie shouts over the roar of the engines

Margie: What time do you think we’ll reach Dallas?

Nell: At this rate, we’ll be there before sunset

N3: They both look out the window

Margie (suddenly alarmed): Hey, do you smell smoke?

N1: Nell looks around the plane

Nell: I see sparks. An engine is out!

Margie: Let’s look for a place to land

N2: The other engine starts to sputter. One of the wings dips

Nell: Margie! The other engine is on fire. We have to jump out now, or there won’t be time for our parachutes to open

N3: Margie struggles with her seat belt.

Margie: I’m stuck! Go. Don’t wait for me

Nell: I can’t leave you!

Margie: There’s no sense in both of us dying!

N1: Flames destroy the rear of the plane

Margie: Go, Nell! Go now!

N2: Margie squeezes her eyes shut

Margie (whispering): Help me, Aunt Margaret.

Nell: I’m sorry, Margie!

N3: Nell jumps out of the plane

N1: Margie coughs from the smoke. She tugs and tugs at her seat belt.

Margie: Help me, Aunt Margaret.

N2: Suddenly, the buckle comes loose

N3: Margie climbs out of the cockpit and jumps.

Peter Stackpole/The LIFE Picture Collection/Shutterstock

A WASP pilot training in July 1943

SCENE 7

The Next Day ★ 

Carlsbad, New Mexico

N1: Margie lies on a cot in an Army hospital

N2: She opens her eyes and sees her parents

Margie (groggily): Mom? Dad? Where am I?

Mom: New Mexico.

Margie: How did you get here

Dad: We drove all night

Margie: Nell! Where’s Nell?

N3: Margie tries to sit up. She notices a bandage around her arm.

Mom: Nell is OK. We’re worried about you, though. You had a hard landing

Margie: What about the plane

Dad: It crashed in a field

N1: Tears well up in Dad’s eyes

Dad: You’re lucky to be alive

N2: Margie reaches out for his hand

Margie: I’m sorry to put you through this, Dad

Dad: Oh, Margie, you have nothing to be sorry about. You just remind me so much of your Aunt Margaret. Her determination, her sense of adventureI see those things in you

N3: Margie smiles

Dad: Just promise me that you’ll keep chasing your dreams

Margie: I promise, Dad. Now . . . where’s the doctor? I need to get back in the cockpit

videos (2)
Video

Read-Aloud Fiction, Readers Theater Play

Skills in Action: What Is an Inference?

Learn how to make an inference with this fun animated video.

Video

Readers Theater Play

Beyond the Story: American Women During World War II

Learn more about the roles women played in World War II.

Text-to-Speech