Photo: Women Army Service Pilots
Photo from: Missiles and More Museum
Photo from: Missiles and More Museum
Camp Davis/WASP
Camp Davis came to North Carolina in 1940, and was actually located on the mainland at Holly Ridge (Missiles and More Museum; Stallman, 1996). This camp was built for military purposes such as to prepare troops for war, serve as a separation center and was the base for early development of missiles for Operation Bumblebee, which will be discussed later on (Stallman, 1996). During the time that Camp Davis was used to prepare troops for war, Topsail Island was leased to the military in order for them to go on to the island for maneuvers, target range and for beach recreation. Camp Davis was eventually known for anti-aircraft, seacoast defense and barrage balloon (the new defense weapon against airplanes), and in fact the first barrage balloon training center was actually formed at this camp (Stallman, 1996).
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Photo: Camp Davis
Photo from: Missles and More Museum |
Also during 1941, the Army Air Force was beginning to take the first steps of allowing women pilots to work in the military, which eventually became known the Women Army Service Pilots (Missiles and More Museum; Stallman, 1996). By 1943, these women became an essential part of WWII antiaircraft training at Camp Davis and Topsail Island (Stallman, 1996). There were eighteen women that came to Camp Davis and an experiment took place based on the women being at the camp (Missiles and More Museum; Stallman, 1996). The purpose of this experiment was to determine the capabilities and limitations of women as target pilots (Stallman, 1996). These women that came to the camp flew different planes such as strafing, tracking, and tow target. Also, throughout the night these women would fly out to the sea and back for radar purposes. Each of these women that attended Camp Davis played an essential role as pilots for the U.S. military (Stallman, 1996).
Photos of the Women that came to Camp Davis
Photo: Women Army Service Pilots at Camp Davis
Photo from: Missiles and More Museum
Photo from: Missiles and More Museum