First U.S. Army Air Forces Women Pilots, the WAFS
Cornelia Fort (1919-1943)
Six years ago as I toured the Pearl Harbor Aviation Museum in Honolulu, I noticed a small section about Cornelia Fort, the first woman pilot to die in service to the country. In September 1942, Cornelia was the second female pilot accepted in the U.S. Army’s new Women’s Auxiliary Ferrying Squadron (the WAFS), led by Nancy Love, an accomplished pilot herself. Tragically, Cornelia died on March 21, 1943 in a mid-air collision as she was ferrying a BT-13 military airplane from Long Beach, California, to Dallas, Texas.
Planning an educational webinar to honor the 80th anniversary of Pearl Harbor in 2021, I decided to anchor the webinar with the story of Cornelia’s courageous life. In 1941 before Cornelia became a member of the WAFS, she was a civilian flight instructor in Honolulu working for the Andrew Flying Service that provided lessons as part of the Civilian Pilot Training Program (CPTP), a federal government program that offered free flying lessons to college students. On December 7, 1941, Cornelia was in the air early that morning instructing a student who was ready to solo. She came nose to nose with a Japanese Zero evading the attack and landing safely at the John Rodgers Airport. She was likely the first civilian pilot to recognize Pearl Harbor was under attack.
Following the Dec. 7, 2021 webinar as I learned more about Cornelia’s life and met additional members of the Fort family, I decided Cornelia’s life was timeless, a true inspiration for young and old alike. Thus began an almost four-year journey, and some would say an obsession, to produce Crosswinds: The Courageous Life of Cornelia Fort, released in 2025. It’s been a joyful journey to say the least!
Judith Stanford Miller, M.Ed., M.A., Crosswinds writer and producer, RET editor
Educational Mission
Stories250
As the nation approaches its 250th birthday, RET has created Stories250 (www.stories250.com) to offer a snapshot review of American history through some of the most compelling content RET has developed over the past 20 years. From standing on Omaha Beach on June 6, 2009 to sailing on a tall ship in 2014 during the Bicentennial of the War of 1812, RET content allows the reader to be there as well. In addition to archived content, Stories250 will be developing new content in 2025 and 2026 to honor the nation’s 250 years of independence. Join us!
Redwood Educational Technologies co-founder
Judith Stanford Miller, M.Ed., M.A.
For more than 20 years, Judith has been dedicated to producing original content in support of learning and the meaningful integration of technology in the classroom. With experience both in the classroom as a teacher and as a producer of content for a major broadcast network’s website, Judith brings a unique set of skills to education.
To better understand the use of technology to support learning goals, in 2012, Judith earned a Master of Arts in Digital Media and Education from the University of Michigan. Studying research on how students learn offline, Judith applies those proven principles of learning to the online environment. As national test scores in reading continue to plummet, Judith has presented white papers and best practices at national educational conferences to advocate for the meaningful use of technology. Now producing full length documentaries, Judith believes authentically engaging students in content is the springboard for their motivation to learn.
