Hoisington went ashore at Normandy on June 14, 1944, as part of the initial Women's Army Corps contingent supporting Allied operations in France.
On June 14, 1944, just over a week after the D-Day landings, Elizabeth Hoisington went ashore at Normandy as part of the Women's Army Corps contingent supporting Allied forces in the European theater. This placed her among the very first American servicewomen to set foot on French soil during the liberation campaign.
At the time, the WAC was still a relatively new organization, having been converted from an auxiliary corps to full military status only the previous year. Sending women into a combat theater so close behind the front lines was itself a significant and, for many in the military establishment, controversial decision. Women in the WAC performed critical clerical, communications, and administrative functions that freed male soldiers for combat roles, but their proximity to the fighting in Normandy demonstrated their willingness to share in the dangers of war.
Hoisington's presence in Normandy so soon after the invasion foreshadowed the trailblazing role she would continue to play throughout her career. Her wartime service in France, including this early landing, built the reputation for competence and courage that would later support her selection as one of the U.S. Army's first female generals.