FSC-22 Flight Nurse Section of the Aerospace Medical Association Records
Scope and Content
The records of the Flight Nurses Section of the Aerospace Medical Association began in 1963 when the Section was created. However, the occupation of flight nursing dates back to the Second World War. While the vast majority of the Flight Nurse Section records deal with the agency itself, they include some additional material on World War 11 flight nurses and their reunions.
The records within the collection are divided into nine different record groups or series. Due to the nature of the organization itself, with leadership changing annually and no standardized method of record keeping, there was no consistent method of organization. Originally, all the records for the Section were kept by the President in a single notebook. As the organization grew additional files, for example, correspondence or committees, were added. Yet the President continued to keep an annual notebook. Therefore many of the records may be duplicated in one or more series. The collection is divided into series based upon different functions of the Flight Nurse Section. At the same time, as much of the original order as possible has been maintained.
There is a large gap in the collection coverage. There is no readily available record of when the section changed its name from "Flight Nurse Section" to "Aerospace Nursing Section", nor of when the section became the "Aerospace Nursing Society". A limited number of files from the era of the Aerospace Nursing Section were added from the Aersopace Medical Association Records processed in 2009. Although these additions were provided by the AsMA, the files clearly originated with the Aerospace Nurses Section Representative on the AsMA Council at the time (presumably, also the ANS President/Chair). Thus, these records were accessioned to the Flight Nurses Section Records rather than the AsMA Records.
Series I, Administration, contains administrative records such as the Constitution and By-laws of the Flight Nurses Section. It also contains the minutes of the Flight Nurse Section Executive Committee and Aerospace Medical Association Council documents that originated from the Aerospace Nursing Section's representative on the Council at that time. Series I covers the years 1963-2000, with the bulk of the records coming from the 1970s and 1980s.
The heart of the Flight Nurse Section record is contained in Series II, Annual Meetings, Series III, Correspondence, and Series IV, Committees. Series II consists of the Flight Nurse "Annual." The "Annuals" appear to be the Section's Annual Meeting, which is held each year in conjunction with the Aerospace Medical Association Convention. The main activity of the Flight Nurse Section is their Annual Meeting, and most of the information in the -Annuals- deals with preparations for this meeting. The Flight Nurse Section "Annuals" for 1972 and 1973 contain Newsletters, which apparently were only produced during those two years. Series II dates from 1966-1999. After 1980, correspondence was no longer filed with the "Annuals," with the exception of some annual meeting planning correspondence files that were processed in 2009 and roughly cover the span of 1977-1999.
Series III, Correspondence, begins in 1965 with a file on the WWII Flight Nurse Association. The rest of the correspondence is of a general nature and spans the period 1974 to 2000.
Series IV, Committees, covers the years 1967-2000. Both Flight Nurse/Aerospace Nurses Section and Aerospace Medical Association Committees are represented.
Series V is comprised of news articles and clippings about the Flight Nurse Section. A majority of these articles are taken from Aerospace Medicine. They cover the years 1963-1954. There is also a 1943 article about flight nursing during WWII.
Series VI consists of photographs. Most of the photographs were taken at the Annual Meetings. A few are official photos of members of the Flight Nurse Section. For quick reference, the photographs are indexed in a separate photo name file.
Series VII appears to be a scrapbook. It contains both photos and correspondence which has been filed in its original order. The material dates from 1963-1979.
Series VIII contains blueprints of a C-9 with plans for nursing stations and patient care. The blueprints date from 1965-1966.
Two miscellaneous items, the plaque from the first Flight Nurse Presidents' gavel and the pattern for the Flight Nurse Section Flag can be found in Series IX, Miscellaneous.
Dates
- Creation: 1943-2000
Creator
- Aerospace Medical Association. Flight Nurse Section (Organization)
Restrictions on Access
There are no restrictions on accessing materials in this collection.
Restrictions on Use
Copyright restrictions may apply. Unpublished manuscripts are protected by copyright. Permission to publish, quote or reproduce must be secured from the repository and the copyright holder.
Biography of FSC-22 Flight Nurse Section of the Aerospace Medical Collection
The Flight Nurse Section began in mid-1963 when a group of active duty, retired and allied nurses met at Brooke AFB, Texas, and petitioned the Aerospace Medical Association to establish an affiliated group. The goals of this group were: 1) To contribute to the present space-minded age, 2) To further their knowledge in aeronautics and aerospace medicine, 3) To participate in promoting the science of nursing within aerospace, and 4) 10 provide a focal point for the flight nurses who were members of the Aerospace Medical Association.
The Flight Nurses originally intended to keep their organization simple, with a Chairman and a Secretary as the only elected officers. However, the Section grew rapidly in its first years, making additional officers necessary. After 1970, the President served for a one year term. The office of Vice-President gave continuity to the organization. The Vice-President was the President-Elect for the following year. In addition to a Secretary and a Treasurer, the Flight Nurses Section had an Executive Board comprised of the three most recent former Presidents, the current President and Vice-President and two members of the Flight Nurse Section.
In the spring of 1971, the Flight Nurse Section became a constituent of the Aerospace Medical Association. Through this action, the Section attained full privileges within the parent organization. In the late 1980s or the 1990s, the Flight Nurse Section was renamed the Aerospace Nurses Section. The Aerospace Nurses Section has since become the Aerospace Nursing Society. It is still a constituent of the Aerospace Medical Association.
Membership is open to registered nurses who have an interest in aerospace or environmental health nursing and who are members of the Aerospace Medical Association. The following information may be helpful to the researcher.
PAST PRESIDENTS OF THE FLIGHT NURSE SECTION:
- Date President
- 1964-1966 Lt. Col. Agnes Arrington, USAF, NC
- 1966-1968 Lt. Col. Florence T. Marchitelli, USAF, NC
- 1968-1970 Lt. Col. Sarah E. Beard, USAF, NC
- 1970-1971 Lt. Col. Sarah E. Beard, USAF, NC
- 1971-1972 Lt. Col. Sarah E. Beard, USAF, NC
- 1972-1973 Col. Anne I. Hines, USAF, NC
- 1973-1974 Lt. Col. Ethel A. Nelson, USAF, NC
- 1974-1975 Maj. Jeanne L. Curtis, USAF, NC
- 1975-1976 Lt. Col. Barbara L. Farrell, USAF, NC
- 1976-1977 Lt. Col. Dennis J. Kirby, USAF, NC
- 1977-1978 Col. Helen D. Kopczynski, USAF, NC
- 1978-1979 Col. Constance R. Sturim, USAF, NC
- 1979-1980 Lt. Col. Phyllis A. Luttman, USAF, NC
- 1980-1981 Col. Margaret M. Korach, USAF, NC
- 1981-1982 Col. Margaret M. Korach, USAF, NC
- 1982-1983 Col. Margaret M. Korach, USAF, NC
- 1983-1984 Col. Margaret M. Korach, USAF, NC
- 1964-1966
- Lt. Col. Agnes Arrington, USAF, NC
- 1966-1968
- Lt. Col. Florence T. Marchitelli, USAF, NC
- 1968-1970
- Lt. Col. Sarah E. Beard, USAF, NC
- 1970-1971
- Lt. Col. Sarah E. Beard, USAF, NC
- 1971-1972
- Lt. Col. Sarah E. Beard, USAF, NC
- 1972-1973
- Col. Anne I. Hines, USAF, NC
- 1973-1974
- Lt. Col. Ethel A. Nelson, USAF, NC
- 1974-1975
- Maj. Jeanne L. Curtis, USAF, NC
- 1975-1976
- Lt. Col. Barbara L. Farrell, USAF, NC
- 1976-1977
- Lt. Col. Dennis J. Kirby, USAF, NC
- 1977-1978
- Col. Helen D. Kopczynski, USAF, NC
- 1978-1979
- Col. Constance R. Sturim, USAF, NC
- 1979-1980
- Lt. Col. Phyllis A. Luttman, USAF, NC
- 1980-1981
- Col. Margaret M. Korach, USAF, NC
- 1981-1982
- Col. Margaret M. Korach, USAF, NC
- 1982-1983
- Col. Margaret M. Korach, USAF, NC
- 1983-1984
- Col. Margaret M. Korach, USAF, NC
Biographical / Historical
The Flight Nurses originally intended to keep their organization simple, with a Chairman and a Secretary as the only elected officers. However, the Section grew rapidly in its first years, making additional officers necessary. After 1970, the President served for a one year term. The office of Vice-President gave continuity to the organization. The Vice-President was the President-Elect for the following year. In addition to a Secretary and a Treasurer, the Flight Nurses Section had an Executive Board comprised of the three most recent former Presidents, the current President and Vice-President and two members of the Flight Nurse Section.
In the spring of 1971, the Flight Nurse Section became a constituent of the Aerospace Medical Association. Through this action, the Section attained full privileges within the parent organization. In the late 1980s or the 1990s, the Flight Nurse Section was renamed the Aerospace Nurses Section. The Aerospace Nurses Section has since become the Aerospace Nursing Society. It is still a constituent of the Aerospace Medical Association.
Membership is open to registered nurses who have an interest in aerospace or environmental health nursing and who are members of the Aerospace Medical Association. The following information may be helpful to the researcher.
PAST PRESIDENTS OF THE FLIGHT NURSE SECTION:
Extent
3.3 linear feet
Language of Materials
English
Abstract
The records of the Flight Nurses Section of the Aerospace Medical Association began in 1963 when the Section was created. However, the occupation of flight nursing dates back to the Second World War. While the vast majority of the Flight Nurse Section records deal with the agency itself, they include some additional material on World War II flight nurses and their reunions. The records also contain correspondence and annual meeting files, including some from the 1990s and 2000 after the Flight Nurse Section became the Aerospace Nurses Section.
Statement of Arrangement
The collection is arranged into nine series.
- Series I: Administration
- Series II: Annual Meetings
- Series III: Correspondence
- Series IV: Committees
- Series V: News Articles and Clippings
- Series VI: Photographs
- Series VII: Scrapbooks
- Series VIII: Blueprints
- Series IX: Miscellaneous
Accruals
Additional documents may be deposited in the future.
Subject
- Aerospace Medical Association. Flight Nurse Section (Organization)
- Aerospace Medical Association. Aerospace Nursing Section (Organization)
- Aerospace Nursing Society (Organization)
- Title
- Guide to the Flight Nurse Section of the Aerospace Medical Association Records (FSC-22)
- Status
- Completed
- Author
- Finding aid prepared by Ximena Chrisagis
- Date
- 2015
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- English
- Script of description
- Latin
Repository Details
Part of the Special Collections Repository
Wright State University Libraries
Special Collections and Archives
3640 Colonel Glenn Hwy
Dayton OH 45435-0001 USA
937-775-2092
library-archives@wright.edu
