Smaranda Brăescu (21 May 1897 – 2 February 1948) was a

Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and Southeast Europe, Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, S ...

n parachuting and aviation pioneer, former multiple world record holder. Her achievements earned her the nickname "Queen of the Heights". In the late 1920s and early 1930s she achieved several notable records, becoming the first Romanian woman to hold a parachuting license, the first European woman to be granted an American pilot license and the women's record holder for highest parachute jump. While visiting

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

in 1932 she broke the overall parachuting height record, jumping from around . These feats made her a popular heroine both in Romania and abroad, a status that was further confirmed by her participation as part of a White Squadron medical wing in several battles of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. Opposition to the newly installed

communist regime A communist state, also known as a Marxist–Leninist state, is a one-party state that is administered and governed by a communist party guided by Marxism–Leninism. Marxism–Leninism was the state ideology of the Soviet Union, the Cominte ...

lead to her being sent to prison in 1946, where she most likely died two years later.

Biography

Early life

She was born in the village of Hânțești, Buciumeni commune, in the present-day

Galați County Galați () is a county ( județ) of Romania, in Moldavia region, with the capital city at Galați. History Historically Galați is part of Moldavia. In 1858, it was represented by Alexandru Ioan Cuza at the ''ad hoc Divan'' at Iași, in the wa ...

. After

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 ...

she worked as a substitute teacher in her native village.

Career

In 1918, she flew for the first time in a

Farman Farman Aviation Works (french: Avions Farman) was a French aircraft company founded and run by the brothers Richard, Henri, and Maurice Farman. They designed and constructed aircraft and engines from 1908 until 1936; during the French national ...

plane piloted by Captain Dumitru Naidinescu. In 1928, while in Germany, she bought a parachute, and jumped for the first time from a height, becoming the first female Romanian parachutist. She obtained her parachuting license on 5 July 1928, while traveling to

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...

, after a two days course and a jump without incidents. She became the first Romanian woman to ever obtain a parachuting license and one of the first women in the world to do so. This feat made Romania the third country in the world with a female parachutist. In 1930, after a jump near

Satu Mare Satu Mare (; hu, Szatmárnémeti ; german: Sathmar; yi, סאטמאר or ) is a city with a population of 102,400 (2011). It is the capital of Satu Mare County, Romania, as well as the centre of the Satu Mare metropolitan area. It lies in the ...

, she was seriously injured and remained bedridden for six months. On 2 October 1931, Brăescu set the women's world record for highest parachute jump (from around 6,000 meters or 20,700 feet), landing in the

Bărăgan Plain The Bărăgan Plain ( ro, Câmpia Bărăganului ) is a steppe plain in south-eastern Romania. It makes up much of the eastern part of the Wallachian Plain. The region is known for its black soil and a rich humus, and is mostly a cereal-growing are ...

. In 1932, in her

Miles Hawk The Miles M.2 Hawk was a twin-seat light monoplane designed and produced by the British aircraft manufacturer Miles Aircraft Limited during the 1930s. It is the first of the company's aircraft to attain quantity production. The Hawk's developm ...

, she established the record crossing the Mediterranean Sea between Rome and Tripoli – in 6 hours and 10 minutes. On 19 May 1932, she set the absolute world record for highest parachute jump, in

Sacramento, California ) , image_map = Sacramento County California Incorporated and Unincorporated areas Sacramento Highlighted.svg , mapsize = 250x200px , map_caption = Location within Sacramento C ...

. It was homologated by the Aero Club of Washington. Sources disagree on the exact height of her jump, but it is usually given at somewhere around 7000 meters. From then on, she becomes a heroine, being escorted by 30 other planes to an air show in Canada, where she is invited. Later that year, Brăescu obtained her private pilot's license in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

, becoming the first European woman to receive an American pilot's license. She was in the White Squadron medical wing during battles on the Eastern Front in World War II, remaining active until 12 May 1945. She owned two biplanes.

Later life

After World War II, she signed a document condemning the November 1946 election, and was sent to prison for two years. It is believed she died on 2 February 1948, and is possibly buried in the Central Cemetery in

Cluj ; hu, kincses város) , official_name=Cluj-Napoca , native_name= , image_skyline= , subdivision_type1 = Counties of Romania, County , subdivision_name1 = Cluj County , subdivision_type2 = Subdivisions of Romania, Status , subdivision_name2 ...

, under the name of Maria Popescu.

Legacy

A street in Bucharest and the 53rd Commando Battalion of the Special Operations Forces Command are named after her.

References

External links

* Dr. Valeriu Avram
''Smaranda Brăescu,o pasăre în văzduh'' (Smaranda Brăescu, A Bird in the Sky)
in ''Magazin istoric'', January 2001 * Costin Anghel

, in ''

Jurnalul Național ''Jurnalul Național'' is a Romanian newspaper, part of the INTACT Media Group led by Dan Voiculescu, which also includes the popular television station Antena 1. The newspaper was launched in 1993. Its headquarters is in Bucharest Bucharest ...

'', 10 April 2005 {{DEFAULTSORT:Braescu, Smaranda 1897 births 1948 deaths People from Galați County Romanian aviators Romanian schoolteachers Romanian skydivers Romanian women aviators Women aviation record holders Romanian military personnel of World War II Romanian dissidents Romanian people who died in prison custody Prisoners who died in Romanian detention