Women in Aviation

by Erika Kosin Rowan Public Library

            The history of Aviation is alive and well in North Carolina with license plates boasting “First in Flight” to commemorate that fateful day when Wilbur and Orville Wright took to the air.  Many pilots have followed as they attempted to be the first at something in flight.  Charles Lindberg was the first to fly solo across the Atlantic Ocean without stopping, and of course Amelia Earhart was the first woman to do the same.  There are many others who helped develop the history of aviation by daring to dream taking chances.  Women, such as Amelia Earhart, dreamed of flying just as much as men, but in the 20’s, 30’s, 40’s and 50’s, a women’s place was seen as in the kitchen and their dreams of flight were not possible, but a few women set out to prove the critics wrong.    

            In 1921 “Brave Bessie” Coleman became the first licensed black aviator in the world.  She not only dreamed about flying, but was so determined to learn she went to France where she was able to become a pilot.  The picture book Nobody Owns the Sky by Reeve Lindbergh poetically follows her dream and determination of becoming a pilot.  She flew in air shows and influenced young girls who also wanted to fly, who saw not only a black pilot, but a female one as well. 

            Ruth Elder, a Hollywood actress and pilot, decided after Charles Lindbergh successfully crossed the Atlantic Ocean, that she was going to be the first woman to do so, thereby proving everyone wrong about a woman in the cockpit.  Flying Solo: How Ruth Elder soared into America's heart by Julie Cummins follows her 1927 journey and the spectacular crash that ended her flight, but paved the way for  future generations of female flyers.  One of these pilots was  Amelia Earhart, the most famous female pilot in American history, who succeeded where Ruth failed with a Solo flight Across the Atlantic in 1932.  Learn more about Amelia and her famous flights in Amelia Earhart: The Legend of the Lost Aviator by Shelley Tanaka.

            During WWII, many female pilots were recognized and accepted, but were not allowed to fight in combat.  Sky High: The True Story of Maggie Gee by Marissa Moss tells the story of Maggie Gee, a Chinese-American who joined the WASP (Woman Airforce Service Pilots) and help trained fighter pilots during the war.  WASP was disbanded in 1944 and it took another 30 years before females were allowed to fly a U.S. military plane again.

            The dreams of female flyers were still alive in 1994 when 12 year old Vicki Van Meter became the youngest person to fly across the Atlantic Ocean.  Since her flight, federal regulations have been changed to stop student pilots from attempting to break records, leaving many of the records set by Vicki Van Meter to never be broken.  See what it was like to be such a young pilot with all of the fan fare and media coverage in her own words in Taking Flight: My story.   

            Early pilots, both male and female, all had one thing in common, they dared to dream.  In honor of National Aviation Month, let’s remember these dreamers and the strides they made to make their dreams come true as they flew into the history books.   Check out these books on female pilots and their male counterparts at the Rowan Public Library.