Opportunities for Women in the Air National Guard

For years women have struggled to break through barriers shaped by traditions and myths. Although the military has historically been a masculine institution, substantial changes in the Armed Forces in recent decades, such as the All-Volunteer Force in 1973, have brought about gender integration and increasing numbers of women serving in the military.





This paper examines the advances female officers have made from approximately 1976 through 1996 in the Air National Guard, Air Force Reserves and active duty Air Force. The paper makes a serious attempt to determine whether or not women officers in the Air National Guard have the same promotion opportunities and leadership positions available to them as female officers in the Air Force Reserves and the active duty Air Force.