Mozelle Simpson was a member of the Women Armed Service Pilots in 1943, during the second World War. She trained the male bombardiers who were in turn sent overseas for the war effort. Information regarding her was still classified as late as 1982, but we can now tell how she flew four-engine bombers.
The following excerpts are from an article that ran in our town newspaper three months before Mozelle I. Simpson died.
“Mozelle flew more than 2,000 hours in twin-engine planes and earned her wings not only from the WASPs, but also from the United States Army Air Force.
“Letters to her sister, Lillian Pipkin, also of Quitman, tell of her many flying hours. They also tell of the varied reactions of the men who would stand out by the airplanes talking to her while waiting for the ‘pilot’ to show up.
“Her happiest hours were spent in ‘my honey’ as she called it, and whenever she had the opportunity to fly near family, she would ‘buzz’ their house. ‘We even had signals worked out,’ said Lillian. “
In a time when a woman’s place was considered to be in the home, and bombardiers expected their training instructor pilots to be men, Mozelle carved out a place for herself in the history of women’s aviation
Mrs. Geneva Fairbanks
Rossville, Kansas
Back in 1955 a call went out from the editors of the then Capper’s Weekly asking for readers to send in articles on true pioneers. Hundreds of letters came pouring in from early settlers and their children, many now in their 80s and 90s, and from grandchildren of settlers, all with tales to tell. So many articles were received that a decision was made to create a book, and in 1956, the first My Folks title – My Folks Came in a Covered Wagon – hit the shelves. Nine other books have since been published in the My Folks series, all filled to the brim with true tales from Capper’s readers, and we are proud to make those stories available to our growing online community.
