VA profiles Elsie S. Ott, first woman to receive the Army Air Medal

The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs published a profile of Elsie S. Ott, a World War II Army nurse who, according to the department, became the first woman in Army history to receive the Air Medal, on March 26, 1943.

The VA said that in January 1943, while stationed in Karachi, India, Ott was given 24 hours' notice to escort five seriously ill and wounded soldiers on what became the first intercontinental aeromedical evacuation flight to the United States. According to the department, she had never flown before. The trip took about a week by air, compared with roughly three months by sea, and ended at Walter Reed Hospital in Washington, D.C.

The VA said Ott cared for patients with paralysis, tuberculosis and psychiatric illness during the flight, with minimal supplies and no formal flight nurse training. She recorded details such as oxygen needs and cabin temperature concerns, which the department said helped shape later aeromedical protocols.

According to the VA, the flight accelerated development of a formal flight nurse program in the Army Air Forces. Ott later completed flight nurse training, served overseas and rose to the rank of captain before leaving active duty in 1946. The department said the McDonnell Douglas C-9 Nightingale, the first military aircraft designed specifically for medical evacuation, was named in her honor in 1965.

Source: U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.

Originally published by True News: https://truenews.bagleyenterprises.net/stories/221