Taking Flight: The Nadine Ramsey Story by Raquel Ramsey and Tricia Aurand

Reviewed by LCDR Rebekah Cranor, USN

Despite the massive amount of literature written about World War II, there are still plenty of unsung heroes that deserve to have their stories told. Members of the Women Airforce Service Pilots (WASP) certainly fall into the category of overlooked heroes. “Taking Flight: The Nadine Ramsey Story” tells the story of one WASP Member, Nadine Ramsay. While it is indicative of all women who served in the WASP, this book is a personal narrative about Nadine and her family.

Both Nadine and her brother, Ed, served in World War II. Col. Edwin Ramsey became famous for his role as the guerrilla leader during the Japanese occupation of the Philippines and leading the last American cavalry charge in military history. His sister’s story is not nearly as well known. “Taking Flight” tells the story of Nadine’s exceptional piloting skills, love of flying, time in military service, and role as a trailblazer for women in aviation.

Nadine grew up in Wichita, named the Air Capital City in 1929. Following in the footsteps of women like Amelia Earhart and Jackie Cochran, Nadine began flying lessons. She became the first Kansas woman to earn a commercial pilot’s license and the first female pilot in Wichita’s chapter of the National Aeronautic Association.

As a WASP, Nadine joined the over 1,000 women serving as pilots who tested and ferried aircraft, freeing up male pilots for combat roles in WWII. Throughout the book, the authors do an excellent job of detailing Nadine’s life, from the highs of being chosen to fly fighter aircraft including P-51s and P-38s, to the lows of losing one of her close friends, Helen Jo Severson, who was one of the 38 WASPs to lose their life in service during the War.

The authors also tell of Nadine’s life after the war. The end of WWII and the disbanding of the WASPs meant that many female pilots were no longer able to pursue flying, military or commercial. Nadine went on to be the only female pilot after the war to train male pilots to fly Army Air Force fighter planes. She also was the first woman to own a P-38 Lightning fighter aircraft.

I read the book wishing that I could have met Nadine at an air show or had her as one of my instructor pilots. Her love of flying is contagious, and the authors have written a beautiful tribute to an amazing woman. This is not just a book for female aviators, but should be enjoyed by everyone who loves aviation and learning about the pioneers who paved the way for military aviation as we know it today.