There are a lot of “firsts,” but how much do you know about women’s “firsts” in aviation? Read on to find out more.
Our upcoming airshow, Wings Over Camarillo, is dedicated to celebrating women’s significant contributions to the aviation industry this August. So continuing with our series of articles celebrating women, this one is dedicated to celebrating notable ‘firsts’ of women in aviation.
Pioneer Balloonists
Before the invention of modern aircraft, the aerial mode of transport was through hot air balloons. A hot air balloon contains heated air, lighter than normal air outside the balloon, causing it to float upwards and thus fly. On June 4, 1784, Marie Elisabeth Thible became the first woman to fly in a hot air balloon. And on November 10, 1798, Jeanne Labrosse became the first woman to fly a balloon solo. Marie Marvingt, from France, was the first woman to fly over the North sea, piloting a hot air balloon solo across Europe to England.
The First Female Fliers of the Mechanical Airplane
● Katherine Wright
The machine-powered aircraft that evolved into the modern-day airplane was invented in 1903 by brothers Wilbur and Orville Wright. Their sister, Katherine Wright, was vital to the brothers’ invention. Wilbur remarked, “If the world ever thinks of us in connection to aviation, it must remember our sister.” Katherine Wright was the first woman to fly on an aircraft when she flew with her brothers during one of their demonstrations in France in 1909.
● Baroness Raymonde de Laroche
Shortly after Katherine’s flight, Baroness Raymonde de Laroche, from France, became the first woman to fly an aircraft solo. On March 8, 1910, she became the first woman to obtain a pilot’s license.
● Helene Dutrieu
Helene Dutrieu was the first woman to fly an aircraft while carrying a passenger and also the first woman to pilot a seaplane.
● Harriet Quimby
On August 1, 1911, when Harriet Quimby obtained her pilot’s license, she became the first American woman and the second woman worldwide to do so.
● Bessica Raiche
In 1912, Bessica Raiche, who watched Baroness Laroche’s flight demonstrations in France, was the first American woman to fly an aircraft solo in the United States. She achieved this on September 16, 1910, while flying an aircraft she and her husband built in their living room.
● Katherine Stinson
Katherine Stinson was the first female pilot employed by the US Postal Service, making her the first woman to fly the mail in the US. She was also the first civilian pilot to fly mail in Canada. She toured Asia in 1917 and became the first woman to fly in Japan or China.
● Bessie Coleman
Bessie Coleman made history when she became the first African-American of either gender to earn a pilot’s license. She earned it on June 15, 1922, in France, where she had to travel to because pilot training and licensing were unavailable to African-Americans in the United States.
Record Breakers
● Helene Dutrieu
On December 21, 1910, Helene Dutrieu became the first woman to win the Coupe Femina, an aviation challenge hosted by a French Magazine – Femina, open to female aviators only. She flew 167km non-stop in 2 hours and 35 minutes. Helene Dutrieu beat 14 male competing pilots the next year to win the Coppa del Re in Florence, Italy.
● Georgia ‘Tiny’ Broadwick
On June 21, 1913, Georgia ‘Tiny’ Broadwick became the first woman to parachute from a plane, jumping from a plane in Los Angeles at 2000 feet. She was the first person to demonstrate the use of parachutes to the United States Army. In 1914, she parachuted into Lake Michigan, becoming the first woman to jump from an airplane into a body of water.
● Ruth Law
Ruth Law, the first woman to fly at night, became the first woman to loop the loop in 1913. Inspired to take up flying by her parachutist brother, Ruth initially sought lessons from the legendary Orville Wright but was turned down because Orville believed women aren’t mechanically inclined. This only made Ruth more determined. “The surest way to make me do a thing is to tell me I can’t do it.” She set multiple aviation records, one of which was breaking the world’s non-stop cross-country record by flying 590 miles from Chicago, Illinois, to Hornell, New York.
● Phoebe Omlie
Phoebe Omlie, in 1927, became the first woman to earn a Transport license. She won the Dixie Derby Air race in 1930, and then in 1931, the first year the National Air races in Cleveland were open to women, Phoebe Omile won it.
● Amelia Earhart
Legendary aviator Amelia Earhart 1928 was the first female passenger to fly across the Atlantic. She flew across the Atlantic again in 1932, this time solo, becoming the first woman to do so. In 1935, she became the first person (of either gender) to fly solo across the Pacific from Honolulu to Oakland.
Military Participation
● Female Combat Missions
Helene Dutrieu of France and Eugenie Shakhovskaya of Russia during World war 1, became the first female reconnaissance pilots. Sabiha Gokcen was the first woman to fly combat missions, and she did so in Turkey in 1937.
● Female Air Transport Auxiliary
In November 1939, in Britain, during the onset of the second world war, Pauline Gower established the female arm of the Air Transport Auxiliary responsible for ferrying aircraft to storage or operational bases. She was the first woman to be allowed into, let alone fly, a Royal Air force airplane.
● Women’s Auxiliary Ferrying Squadron (WAFS)
In 1942 during World war II, Nancy Harkness Love convinced the US Air force to set up a squadron of female pilots to ferry aircraft from factories to air bases. The 28 women that made up this squadron – the Women’s Auxiliary Ferrying Squadron (WAFS) – were the first women to ferry airplanes for the US Army. Nancy was the first woman to fly the P-51, P-38, B-25, and B-17 military airplanes.
● Women Airforce Service Pilots (WASP)
The WAFS and the Women’s Flying Training Detachment (WFTD) were fused to form the Women Airforce Service Pilots (WASP) in 1943. Jacqueline Cochran, who holds numerous women aviation records for speed, distance, and altitude, proposed the formation of WASP when she wrote to first lady Eleanor Roosevelt. Throughout its existence, Jacqueline Cochran led about a thousand WASPs who flew over 70 million miles, delivering 12,650 airplanes across the country.
Conclusion
Women have contributed a whole lot to the advancement of the aviation industry. And they have created important landmarks and pioneering moments along the way. A comprehensive repository of these notable moments would fill a book, but this is where we stop today.
Stop by the CAF Museum Hangar to see the Notable Women In Aviation Exhibit!
More details here!
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