NMMSH News:

ALAMOGORDO — New Mexico Museum of Space History invites everyone to a powerful Launch Pad Lecture on the WASP, Women Air Force Service Pilots, from 9-10 a.m., Friday, July 3, 2026, in the New Horizons Dome Theater and Planetarium.

Veteran U.S. Marine Corps aviator and American Airlines First Officer Jacquelyne Nichols will spotlight the bravery and pioneering spirit of WASP. The lecture will feature the exploits of Dora Dougherty and Dorothea Moorman, two WASP pilots who tamed the troubled B-29 Superfortress at Alamogordo Army Airfield.

Guest speaker Jacquelyne Nichols, a veteran U.S. Marine Corps aviator and American Airlines A320 First Officer, will spotlight the extraordinary bravery of the World War II Women Airforce Service Pilots (WASP). These pioneering women flew everything from trainers to heavy bombers and helped change the course of aviation history.

Nichols served 11 years on active duty in the U.S. Marine Corps, flying helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft, completing a combat deployment in Afghanistan where she earned a Strike Flight Air Medal, and serving in Japan and Qatar before transitioning to the Marine Corps Reserves as an instructor pilot and Marine Liaison Officer. She continues to serve in the Reserves while attending Command and Staff College.

The Launch Pad Lecture Series is held on the first Friday of each month in the New Horizons Dome Theater and Planetarium at New Mexico Museum of Space History, 3198 State Route 2001, Alamogordo, NM. The program is free to attend, and museum staff, along with special guest speakers, present topics spanning from space history to the future of space exploration. Launch Pad Lectures are brought to you with the support of the International Space Hall of Fame.