"We kept our ships in flying condition." (Video Interview, 8:07)

Phyllis Marie Aloisio Capelle

Phyllis Aloisio Capelle [detail from video] War: World War, 1939-1945 Branch: Marine Corps Unit: Aviation Women's Squadron 18 Service Location: Marine Corps Air Station, Cherry Point, North Carolina; Naval Aviation Tech Training Center, Memphis, Tennessee; Hunter College, New York Rank: Sergeant Place of Birth: IL

During World War II, 21-year-old Phyllis Aloisio was working in a factory but determined she could better help the effort by joining the WACs. Told she was too young, she joined the Marines, and when she tested well enough to become a machinist's mate, she was sent to Memphis for an accelerated course in mechanics. She worked on a wide variety of aircraft and was one of only 13 women during the war to draw flight pay. Discreet about whether she broke regulations by dating officers, she does talk about meeting aviator Charles Lindbergh and sharing a plane with actor turned Marine Tyrone Power. After the war, she wanted to attend aeronautical school but was told no one would hire a woman pilot, so she became a flight attendant for TWA, a job with as many rules and regulations as the military.