Lillian Boyer (January 15, 1901 – February 1, 1989) was an American
wing walker who performed numerous aerial stunts that included wing walking, automobile-to-airplane transfers, and parachute jumps between 1921 and 1929.
Wing walking career
Working as a restaurant waitress but eager to fly in an airplane, in 1921 Lillian Boyer was invited by two restaurant customers to take an airplane ride. On her second flight, she climbed out on the wing thus beginning her career as an aerial performer.
In December 1921, she began five months of training with pilot Lt.
Billy Brock, former
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
pilot and
barnstormer.
She performed many daring stunts and achieved great public acclaim until 1929 when federal regulations on low flying and unsafe planes forced her and many other barnstormers into retirement.
[TheHenryFord.org]
Lillian Boyer, "Empress of the Air" p.3
Her performances included
* 352 shows in 41 US states and Canada, most of them wing-walking
* 143 automobile-to-plane changes
* 37 parachute jumps (13 into
Lake Erie
Lake Erie ( "eerie") is the fourth largest lake by surface area of the five Great Lakes in North America and the eleventh-largest globally. It is the southernmost, shallowest, and smallest by volume of the Great Lakes and therefore also has t ...
)
See also
*
Air Commerce Act
The Air Commerce Act of 1926 created an Aeronautic Branch of the United States Department of Commerce. Its functions included testing and licensing of pilots, certification of aircraft and investigation of accidents.
In 1934, the Aeronautics Branc ...
, 1926
References
External links
Image of Lillian Boyer Flying Circus*
1901 births
1989 deaths
American stunt performers
Wing walkers
People from Hooper, Nebraska
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