After the United States entered World War II in 1941, a passenger suggested she become a flight nurse for the United States Army Air Forces. In 1939, she became one of the first stewardesses for United Airlines. Mary's Hospital in San Francisco and became a registered nurse. Immediately following high school, Keil attended the nursing program at St. Watching the nuns tend to the sick is what drew her into nursing. She was raised in a convent after her father abandoned her mother and their three small children. Keil led a hero's life and remained active in veterans' affairs until her death in 2005, at age 88.Keil was born in Arcata, California.
#LILLIAN KEIL MOVIE#
This may be why, after her 1961 appearance on the popular television program "This Is Your Life" which normally hosted celebrities and movie stars, her episode generated one of the 10 highest mail responses in the program's long history. It is estimated Keil treated more than 10,000 wounded service members in just this way. "This made them feel very important, and they loved that." "I had to make each patient feel he was the only one on the plane I was caring for, yet I was taking care of 23 others," Keil said. It was her calling, and she called the soldiers her 'boys,'" her daughter said.Īccording to Keil, every patient was unique and memorable. "She never questioned what she needed to do when there was a war. Keil also served as technical advisor on set.įor her military service in two wars she was awarded 19 medals, including a European Theater medal with four battle stars, a Korean service medal with seven battle stars, four air medals and a Presidential Citation from the Republic of Korea. Her extraordinary experiences inspired the movie Flight Nurse, released in 1953. She was also one of only 30 Air Force flight nurses in the entire Far East. The 801st Medical Air Evacuation Transportation Squadron, to which she was assigned, was one of the first units in the history of the service to earn and receive the Distinguished Unit Award. During the next 16 months, Keil flew 175 air evacuations out of Korea, logging 1,400 flight hours. Air Force.įor Air Force operations in the Far East, the only women permitted to serve in the Korean battle zone were medical air evacuation nurses of the USAF Nurse Corps. She picked up where she left off, only this time as a member of America's newest military service branch, the U.S. But, when war erupted on the Korean peninsula in June 1950, Keil volunteered to serve again. Patton knew where the supplies were coming from, and how the nurses were taking care of his wounded soldiers.Īfter the war, Keil hung up her uniform and became a stewardess once again. Keil often flew on planes filled with supplies for Gen. Although medical teams were aboard the aircraft, the C-47s also carried military supplies, which meant the aircraft did not carry Red Cross markings.
"This was important training in the event the nurses crashed somewhere so that no matter where we landed, we could take care of ourselves," Keil said.Īs the D-Day invasion unfolded before the nation, Keil and other flight nurses boarded Douglas C-47s. The intense training course included navigating an obstacle course, sliding on their stomachs beneath a live wire, and swimming under ignited gasoline. The rigors of the job demanded flight nurses to be physically fit. military, only nurses were allowed in combat zones," said Jeff Duford, Air Force Museum research historian. "During World War II, although women performed many roles in the U.S. Keil was among the school's first graduating class of flight nurses from the School of Air Evacuation in Bowman Field, Ky. Shortly after the start of World War II, a passenger suggested she become a flight nurse for the Army-Air Forces.Īlthough the role of flight surgeon was developed in World War I, it was not until November 1942 that the flight surgeon's counterpart, the flight nurse, became a member of the medical flight team. At the time, many stewardesses were nurses. In 1938, before entering the military, Keil became one of the first generation of stewardesses for United Airlines. She took part in 11 major campaigns, including the Battle of the Bulge in World War II and the Battle of Chosin Reservoir in Korea, during which, Air Force pilots and nurses flew almost 4,700 wounded U.S. One of the most decorated women in American military history, Keil was part of 425 combat evacuation missions in World War II and Korea. JOINT BASE SAN ANTONIO-LACKLAND, Texas - The 59th Medical Wing celebrates Nurse and Technician Appreciation Week May 6-12, and this week's Airmen heritage contribution honors one of the greatest military heroes - medical or otherwise - Capt.
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