Honoring the legacy and contributions of Vietnam women Veterans

On National Vietnam War Veterans Day, we recognize and honor the Americans who served during the Vietnam War. But there is a group of Veterans whose contributions have too often gone unrecognized—the women who also served in Vietnam. Your service, sacrifice, and resilience laid the foundation for future generations and shaped history.

A brave act of service

Women who served in critical positions during the Vietnam War helped shape both the military and their legacy as Veterans. From Nov. 1, 1955, to April 30, 1975, more than 265,000 American women volunteered to serve worldwide, with nearly 11,000 directly deployed to Vietnam. Women braved extraordinary challenges, providing critical support in a war zone marked by intense combat and harsh conditions. They helped shatter stereotypes, serving under constant threats and navigating barriers that excluded women from traditional combat roles.

Despite their bravery and loyalty in volunteering their service to our country through critical and life-saving positions, women were often not seen as Veterans by their peers. Many women who served also didn’t identify themselves as Veterans—but their courage and dedication laid the foundation for significant policy changes, expanded military roles, and improved health care for women Veterans.

The critical contributions of women

While many may think women served only as nurses, it is true that women in Vietnam served in many critical positions.

• Medical staff: About 90% of women served in life-saving positions as nurses for the Army, Navy and Air Force Nurse Corps. They provided critical medical care in field hospitals, aboard hospital ships, within evacuation facilities and aboard medevac helicopters, including locations within combat zones under dangerous conditions.
• Intelligence and communications specialists: Women served in jobs requiring high levels of security clearance, including decoding messages and gathering reconnaissance data.
• Administrative and clerical staff: Women in the Women’s Army Corps (WAC) supported the war effort through administrative, logistical and clerical work, ensuring efficient operations in command centers and managing critical communications.
• Air traffic controllers: Women in the U.S. Air Force (WAF) directed the flow of aircraft in and out of war zones, a responsibility that was crucial to the logistics of the war effort. These women worked in air traffic control towers, ensuring the safe and efficient movement of military planes, including those involved in combat and transport operations.
• Commanders and leaders: As the war progressed, women gained new opportunities to lead. In 1967, President Lyndon B. Johnson opened promotions for women to general and flag ranks. In 1972, regulations changed to allow women to command units, even those comprising hundreds of men.
• Trailblazers: Rear Adm. Frances Shea Buckley was a pioneering figure in the Navy Nurse Corps and the first Navy nurse corps officer to achieve a two-star rank. During the Vietnam War, she supervised the operating room on the USS Repose, caring for many wounded soldiers. After retiring in 1983, she continued to advocate for Veterans, serving on the board of the Veterans Medical Research Foundation and as chair of the then-named Veterans Administration Women’s Advisory Committee. Buckley also taught at the United States Air Force School of Aerospace Nursing, significantly impacting military medicine and Veteran health care.

Your lasting legacy

Vietnam women Veterans: You redefined service, pushing boundaries and affirming your capabilities in high-stake environments. Your contributions and advocacy made a lasting impact on our nation, by:

• Challenging norms. You served in life-threatening situations despite not being permitted to carry weapons or officially take on combat roles. Your presence and success challenged traditional norms, paving the way for expanded positions for women in the military, including the 2013 lifting of the military’s official combat ban on women.
• Health care innovations. You pioneered trauma care advancements, such as improved triage techniques. These innovations not only saved countless lives during the war but also influenced emergency medical practices in civilian health care.
• Advocacy and policy reform. After your service, many of you became fierce advocates. Your efforts led to specialized VA health care programs, including services tailored to women’s needs, such as reproductive and gynecological care, mental health support and initiatives addressing military sexual trauma.
• Recognition and representation. By the 1970s, your advocacy secured greater recognition and representation. Vietnam Veteran leaders like the first director of the VA Center for Women Veterans, Joan A. Furey and Linda Spoonster Schwartz, who championed change, shaping policies that better serve all women Veterans today.

VA honors you

We thank you for your courage, dedication and lasting impact on our nation’s history and future generations. You have left a legacy of courage, advocacy and progress.

VA celebrates your contributions and continues to ensure your stories are heard. We are proud to serve you with health care you can trust. For more information on your earned benefits and services, follow us on follow us on Facebook and X at @VAWomenVets and on Pinterest @DeptVetAffairs. We share information on benefits and services, events, stories, research and more. Thank you for your service!