Women in aviation
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Women have been involved in aviation from the
beginnings Beginnings may refer to: Literature * ''Beginnings'' (collection), a 1988 collection of short stories and poems by Gordon R. Dickson * ''Beginnings'' (Honorverse), a 2013 collection of short stories in the Worlds of Honor series * ''Beginnings ...
of both lighter-than air travel and as
airplane An airplane or aeroplane (informally plane) is a fixed-wing aircraft that is propelled forward by thrust from a jet engine, propeller, or rocket engine. Airplanes come in a variety of sizes, shapes, and wing configurations. The broad spe ...
s,
helicopter A helicopter is a type of rotorcraft in which lift and thrust are supplied by horizontally spinning rotors. This allows the helicopter to take off and land vertically, to hover, and to fly forward, backward and laterally. These attributes ...
s and space travel were developed. Women pilots were also formerly called "aviatrices" (singular "aviatrix"). Women have been flying powered aircraft since 1908; prior to 1970, however, most were restricted to working privately or in support roles in the
aviation Aviation includes the activities surrounding mechanical flight and the aircraft industry. ''Aircraft'' includes fixed-wing and rotary-wing types, morphable wings, wing-less lifting bodies, as well as lighter-than-air craft such as hot a ...
industry. Aviation also allowed women to "travel alone on unprecedented journeys". Women who have been successful in various aviation fields have served as
mentors Mentorship is the influence, guidance, or direction given by a mentor. A mentor is someone who teaches or gives help and advice to a less experienced and often younger person. In an organizational setting, a mentor influences the personal and p ...
to younger women, helping them along in their careers. Within the first two decades of powered flight, female pilots were breaking speed, endurance and altitude records. They were competing and winning against the men in air races, and women on every continent except Antarctica had begun to fly, perform in aerial shows, parachute, and even transport passengers. During World War II, women from every continent helped with war efforts and though mostly restricted from military flight many of the female pilots flew in auxiliary services. In the 1950s and 1960s, women were primarily restricted to serving in support fields such as flight simulation training, air traffic control, and as flight attendants. Since the 1970s, women have been allowed to participate in military service in most countries. Women's participation in the field of aviation has increased over the years. The formation of the
Ninety-Nines The Ninety-Nines: International Organization of Women Pilots, also known as The 99s, is an international organization that provides networking, mentoring, and flight scholarship opportunities to recreational and professional female pilots. Foun ...
in 1929 was the first organization for women pilots. Their members have included almost every female pilot of noting accomplishments. Formed after the first official women-only air race in the United States during the 1929 National Air Races. 99 women out of the 117 holding pilot licenses became Founding members of the Ninety-Nines, named after the number of members. Within the United States, during 1930, there were around 200 women pilots but in five years there were more than 700. Women of Aviation Worldwide Week has reported that after 1980, the increase in gender parity for women pilots 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 ...
has been stagnant. Women flying commercial airlines in
India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
make up 20.6% of all pilots. The global number of women airline pilots is 3%. While the overall number of female pilots in aviation has increased, the percentage remains the same.


History

The first woman known to fly was
Élisabeth Thible Élisabeth Thible, or Elizabeth Tible (, 8 March 1757 – after 1784) was a French aviator who was the first woman on record to fly in an untethered hot air balloon. She was born in Lyon on 8 March 1757. On 4 June 1784, eight months after the fir ...
, who was a passenger in an untethered
hot air balloon A hot air balloon is a lighter-than-air aircraft consisting of a bag, called an envelope, which contains heated air. Suspended beneath is a gondola or wicker basket (in some long-distance or high-altitude balloons, a capsule), which carries ...
, which flew above Lyon, France in 1784. Four years later, Jeanne Labrosse became the first woman to fly solo in a balloon and would become the first woman to parachute, as well.
Sophie Blanchard Sophie Blanchard (25 March 1778 – 6 July 1819), commonly referred to as Madame Blanchard and also known by many combinations of her maiden and married names, including Madeleine-Sophie Blanchard, Marie Madeleine-Sophie Blanchard, Marie Sophie ...
took her first balloon flight in 1804, was performing as a professional
aeronaut Aeronautics is the science or art involved with the study, design, and manufacturing of air flight–capable machines, and the techniques of operating aircraft and rockets within the atmosphere. The British Royal Aeronautical Society identifie ...
by 1810 and was made
Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who ...
's chief of air service in 1811. Blanchard, died in a spectacular crash in 1819. In June 1903,
Aida de Acosta Aida de Acosta Root Breckinridge (July 28, 1884 – May 26, 1962) was an American socialite and aviator. She was the first woman to fly a powered aircraft solo. In 1903, while in Paris with her mother, she caught her first glimpse of dirigibles. ...
, an American woman vacationing in Paris, convinced
Alberto Santos-Dumont Alberto Santos-Dumont ( Palmira, 20 July 1873 — Guarujá, 23 July 1932) was a Brazilian aeronaut, sportsman, inventor, and one of the few people to have contributed significantly to the early development of both lighter-than-air and heavie ...
, pioneer of dirigibles, to allow her to pilot his airship, becoming probably the first woman to pilot a motorized aircraft. Starting 1906, another inventor of aircraft, Emma Lilian Todd began designing her own airplanes. Todd first started studying
dirigibles An airship or dirigible balloon is a type of aerostat or lighter-than-air aircraft that can navigate through the air under its own power. Aerostats gain their lift from a lifting gas that is less dense than the surrounding air. In early d ...
before she moved onto designing airplanes. Todd's first plane flew in 1910 and was piloted by
Didier Masson Didier Masson (23 February 1886 – 2 June 1950) was a pioneering French aviator. He was born in Asnières, France. He died and was buried in Mérida, Yucatan, Mexico. Among his adventures was his life as a pioneering barnstormer, bein ...
. A woman who was an early
parachutist Parachuting, including also skydiving, is a method of transiting from a high point in the atmosphere to the surface of Earth with the aid of gravity, involving the control of speed during the descent using a parachute or parachutes. For ...
, Georgia "Tiny" Broadwick started working with barnstormer,
Charles Broadwick Charles Broadwick (born John Murray) was an American pioneering parachutist and inventor. Speaking about Broadwick, an executive director of the U.S. Parachute Association, Ed Scott, said "just about all modern parachute systems" use ideas Broadw ...
at age 15 in 1908. She made her first jump in 1908, and in 1913, became the first woman to jump from an aircraft. Broadwick, in 1914, was also the person who gave the first demonstrations of parachute jumping to the United States government. When she retired in 1922, she had completed 1,100 jumps. The first woman passenger in an airplane was Mlle P. Van Pottelsberghe de la Poterie who flew with
Henri Farman Henri Farman (26 May 1874– 17 July 1958) was a British-French aviator and aircraft designer and manufacturer with his brother Maurice Farman. Before dedicating himself to aviation he gained fame as a sportsman, specifically in cycling and moto ...
on several short flights at an airshow in
Ghent, Belgium Ghent ( nl, Gent ; french: Gand ; traditional English: Gaunt) is a city and a municipality in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is the capital and largest city of the East Flanders province, and the third largest in the country, exceeded in ...
between May and June 1908. Soon after, in July, 1908, sculptor
Thérèse Peltier Thérèse Peltier (1873 – 1926), born Thérèse Juliette Cochet, was a French sculptor and early aviation pioneer. Popularly believed to have been the first ever female passenger in an airplane, she may also have been the first woman to pil ...
was taken up as a passenger by
Léon Delagrange Ferdinand Marie Léon Delagrange (13 March 1872 – 4 January 1910) was a sculptor and pioneering French aviator, ranked as one of the top aviators in the world. Early years Léon Delagrange was born on 13 March 1872 in Orléans, France, the ...
and within a few months had been reported as making a solo flight in Turin, Italy, flying around 200 meters in a straight line about two and a half meters off the ground. Edith Berg, an American, who flew as a passenger with Wilbur Wright in Paris in October 1908, was the inspiration of the
hobble skirt A hobble skirt was a skirt with a narrow enough hem to significantly impede the wearer's stride. It was called a "hobble skirt" because it seemed to hobble any woman as she walked. Hobble skirts were a short-lived fashion trend that peaked betw ...
designed by
Paul Poiret Paul Poiret (20 April 1879 – 30 April 1944, Paris, France) was a French fashion designer, a master couturier during the first two decades of the 20th century. He was the founder of his namesake haute couture house. Early life and care ...
. The first machine-powered flight was accomplished by the Wright Brothers on December 17, 1903. Both brothers felt that it was important to recognize the contributions of Katherine Wright to their work. She found teachers who could help with the Wright's flying experiments. Katherine, although not flying with her brothers until later, in 1909, knew "everything about the working of their machines". Katherine supported them financially, giving them her savings and also supported them emotionally. When Orville Wright was injured in 1908, Katherine moved close to the hospital to take care of him. Later, after the Wright brothers patented their aircraft in 1906, she worked as their executive secretary. In 1909, she traveled to Europe to become the social manager for her brothers. Her brothers were very
introverted The traits of extraversion (also spelled extroversion Retrieved 2018-02-21.) and introversion are a central dimension in some human personality theories. The terms ''introversion'' and ''extraversion'' were introduced into psychology by Carl J ...
and relied on Katherine to help promote their work. Katherine was considered the "silent partner" of the Wright Brothers by '' The World Magazine''. The ''
Saint Louis Post-Dispatch The ''St. Louis Post-Dispatch'' is a major regional newspaper based in St. Louis, Missouri, serving the St. Louis metropolitan area. It is the largest daily newspaper in the metropolitan area by circulation, surpassing the ''Belleville News-De ...
'' called her the "inspiration of her brothers in their experiments".


1910s

Early pioneers include French
Raymonde de Laroche Raymonde de Laroche (22 August 1882 – 18 July 1919) was a French pilot, thought to be the first woman to pilot a plane. She became the world's first licensed female pilot on 8 March 1910. She received the 36th aeroplane pilot's licence issue ...
, the world's first licensed female pilot on March 8, 1910. Seven other French women followed her, earning pilot's licenses within the next year. One of these,
Marie Marvingt Marie Marvingt (20 February 1875 – 14 December 1963) was a French athlete, mountaineer, aviator, and journalist. She won numerous prizes for her sporting achievements including those of swimming, cycling, mountain climbing, winter sports, ballo ...
, 3rd Frenchwoman licensed for airplanes, but first French woman balloonist licensed in 1901, became the first woman to fly in combat completing bombing raids over Germany. Marvingt tried to get the government to outfit air ambulances prior to the war and became the world first certified Flight Nurse.
Hélène Dutrieu Hélène Dutrieu (10 July 1877 – 26 June 1961), was a Belgian cycling world champion, stunt cyclist, stunt motorcyclist, automobile racer, stunt driver, pioneer pilot, wartime ambulance driver, and director of a military hospital. Biog ...
became the first woman pilot in Belgium, obtaining the 27th license issued in her country in 1910 and the second female licensed in Europe. Later that same year, she became the first woman to fly with a passenger. In 1910, even before she earned her pilot's license, Lilian Bland a British woman living in Northern Ireland, designed and flew a glider in Belfast.
Blanche Scott Blanche Stuart Scott (April 8, 1884 – January 12, 1970), also known as Betty Scott, was possibly the first American woman aviator. Biography Early life Blanche Stuart Scott was born on April 8, 1884, in Rochester, New York, to Belle and John ...
always claimed to be the first American woman to fly an airplane, but as she was seated when a gust of wind took her up on her brief flight in September 1910, the "accidental" flight went unrecognized. Within two years, she had established herself as a daredevil pilot and was known as the "Tomboy of the Air", competing in air shows and exhibitions, as well as
flying circus Barnstorming was a form of entertainment in which stunt pilots performed tricks individually or in groups that were called flying circuses. Devised to "impress people with the skill of pilots and the sturdiness of planes," it became popular in ...
es. On October 13, 1910, Bessica Raiche received a gold medal from the Aeronautical Society of New York, recognizing her as the first American woman to make a solo flight.
Harriet Quimby Harriet Quimby (May 11, 1875 – July 1, 1912) was an American pioneering aviator, journalist, and film screenwriter. In 1911, she became the first woman in the United States to receive a pilot certificate, issued to her by the Aero Club of Ame ...
became the USA's first licensed female pilot on August 1, 1911, and the first woman to cross the English Channel by airplane the following year. Thirteen days after Quimby, her friend
Matilde E. Moisant Matilde Josephine Moisant (September 13, 1878 – February 5, 1964) was an American pioneer aviator, the second woman in the United States to obtain a pilot's license. Early life Moisant was born on September 13, 1878 in Earl Park, India ...
an American of French Canadian descent was licensed and began flying in air shows. Within a fortnight,
Lydia Zvereva Lydia Vissarionovna Zvereva (13 August 1890 – 1 May 1916) was a Russian aviation pioneer who is credited with being the first woman in Russia to earn a pilot's license. Although she only lived to the age of 25, Zvereva is recognized for her fe ...
had obtained the first female Russian license and by 1914 she performed the first aerobatic loop made by a woman.
Hilda Hewlett Hilda Beatrice Hewlett (17 February 1864 – 21 August 1943) was an early aviator and aviation entrepreneur. She was the first British woman to earn a pilot's licence. She founded and ran two related businesses: the first flying school in the ...
became the first British woman to earn a pilot's license on August 29, 1911, and taught her son to fly that same year. Cheridah de Beauvoir Stocks became the second
British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...
woman to gain a
Royal Aero Club The Royal Aero Club (RAeC) is the national co-ordinating body for air sport in the United Kingdom. It was founded in 1901 as the Aero Club of Great Britain, being granted the title of the "Royal Aero Club" in 1910. History The Aero Club was foun ...
aviator's licence, on 7 November 1911. In September 1910, Melli Beese became Germany's first woman pilot and the following year began designing her first airplane which was produced in 1913. On October 10, 1911, Božena Laglerová a Czech native of Prague, obtained the first Austrian license for a woman and nine days later secured the second German license for a woman. On 7 December 1910, Jane Herveu, who had previously been involved in
automobile racing Auto racing (also known as car racing, motor racing, or automobile racing) is a motorsport involving the racing of automobiles for competition. Auto racing has existed since the invention of the automobile. Races of various sorts were organi ...
was licensed in France and began participating in the
Femina Cup The Femina Cup or ''Coupe Femina'' was an award of 2000 francs established in 1910 by Pierre Lafitte, the publisher of French women's magazine ''Femina'', to honour women pilots. This French challenge was opened to women aviators only. About ...
. Lilly Steinschneider became the first female pilot in the Austro-Hungarian Empire on August 15, 1912.
Rosina Ferrario Rosina Ferrario (1888–1959) was the first Italian woman to receive a pilot's licence when she passed her test on 3 January 1913 at Vizzola, Lombardy, in a Caproni monoplane. She received Licence No. 203 from the Aeroclub of Italy. Biography B ...
, first female pilot of Italy, earned her license on January 3, 1913, and was as unsuccessful as Marvingt had been to get her government or the Red Cross to allow women to transport wounded soldiers during World War I. Elena Caragiani-Stoenescu, Romania's first woman pilot got the same response from her government about flying for the war effort and turned to journalism. On December 1, 1913, Lyubov Golanchikova signed a contract to become the first female test pilot. She agreed to test "Farman-22" aircraft manufactured in the Chervonskaya airplane workshop of The first woman on the African Continent to earn a pilot's license was Ann Maria Bocciarelli of
Kimberley, South Africa Kimberley is the capital and largest city of the Northern Cape province of South Africa. It is located approximately 110 km east of the confluence of the Vaal and Orange Rivers. The city has considerable historical significance due to its ...
. In 1916, Zhang Xiahun ( zh, 張俠魂) became China's first female pilot when she attended an airshow of the Nanyuan Aviation School and insisted that she be allowed to fly. After circling the field, tossing flowers, she crashed, becoming a national heroine when she survived.
Katherine Stinson Katherine Stinson (February 14, 1891 – July 8, 1977) was an aviation pioneer who in 1912 became the fourth woman in the United States to earn the FAI pilot certificate. She set flying records for aerobatic maneuvers, distance, and endurance. ...
became the first woman air mail pilot, when the
United States Postal Service The United States Postal Service (USPS), also known as the Post Office, U.S. Mail, or Postal Service, is an independent agency of the executive branch of the United States federal government responsible for providing postal service in the U ...
contracted her to fly mail from Chicago to New York City in 1918. The following year,
Ruth Law Ruth Law Oliver (May 21, 1887 - December 1, 1970) was a pioneer American aviator during the 1910s. Biography She was born Ruth Bancroft Law on May 21, 1887 to Sarah Bancroft Breed and Frederick Henry Law in Lynn, Massachusetts. She was inspire ...
flew the first official U.S. air mail to the
Philippines The Philippines (; fil, Pilipinas, links=no), officially the Republic of the Philippines ( fil, Republika ng Pilipinas, links=no), * bik, Republika kan Filipinas * ceb, Republika sa Pilipinas * cbk, República de Filipinas * hil, Republ ...
. Women were also involved in teaching others how to fly.
Hilda Hewlett Hilda Beatrice Hewlett (17 February 1864 – 21 August 1943) was an early aviator and aviation entrepreneur. She was the first British woman to earn a pilot's licence. She founded and ran two related businesses: the first flying school in the ...
and
Gustave Blondeau Gustav Jules Eugene Blondeau was an early pilot and went on to form Hewlett & Blondeau Limited, an aircraft manufacturer in the United Kingdom. He was born on 8 March 1871 in Tergnier, France, (a small town to the North East of Paris) and graduat ...
teamed up in 1910 to start the first flying school in England, the Hewlett-Blondeau School. The school had only one plane with which to instruct students and was open for two years. Charlotte Möhring, the second German woman to earn a pilot's license, worked as a manager of a flying school in 1913.


1920s

Men and women 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 ...
were able to purchase "surplus and decommissioned planes". Wanting to fly, but with little demand after the war, pilots purchased the planes and went from town to town offering rides. Creating attractions to bring in crowds, these daredevils performed stunts, loops and began wing walking to attract more customers. The
aerialist Acrobatics () is the performance of human feats of balance, agility, and motor coordination. Acrobatic skills are used in performing arts, sporting events, and martial arts. Extensive use of acrobatic skills are most often performed in acro ...
s and pilots formed flying circuses sending promoters ahead of them to hang posters promoting their
barnstorming Barnstorming was a form of entertainment in which stunt pilots performed tricks individually or in groups that were called flying circuses. Devised to "impress people with the skill of pilots and the sturdiness of planes," it became popular in ...
feats. In 1920, Phoebe Fairgrave, later Omlie, at the age of eighteen determined to make her aviation career as a
stuntwoman A stunt performer, often called a stuntman or stuntwoman and occasionally stuntperson or stunt-person, is a trained professional who performs daring acts, often as a career. Stunt performers usually appear in films or on television, as opposed ...
. By 1921, she had set a world women's parachute drop record of 15,200 feet and worked as a wing walker for the Fox Moving Picture Company's '' The Perils of Pauline'' series. By 1927, Omlie earned the first transport pilots license and airplane mechanics license issued to a woman. Another stuntwoman, Ethel Dare had perfected walking from one plane to another by 1920, the first woman to perform the feat.
Bessie Coleman Bessie Coleman (January 26, 1892April 30, 1926) was an early American civil aviator. She was the first African-American woman and first Native American to hold a pilot license. She earned her license from the '' Fédération Aéronautique I ...
was the first
African American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ens ...
woman to become a licensed airplane pilot in 1921. That same year, Annie Langstaff, first law graduate of
McGill University McGill University (french: link=no, Université McGill) is an English-language public research university located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Founded in 1821 by royal charter granted by King George IV,Frost, Stanley Brice. ''McGill Universit ...
began taking flying lessons and in 1922 was proclaimed in an article in ''
Maclean's Magazine ''Maclean's'', founded in 1905, is a Canadian news magazine reporting on Canadian issues such as politics, pop culture, and current events. Its founder, publisher John Bayne Maclean, established the magazine to provide a uniquely Canadian persp ...
'', as Canada's first woman to fly. It wa
Eileen Vollick
who was the first women in Canada to obtain a Pilots License in 1928. That year, Japan's first woman pilot Tadashi Hyōdō earned her license.
Kwon Ki-ok Kwon Ki-ok (11 January 1901 – 19 April 1988), or Quan Jiyu in Chinese, was the first Korean female aviator, as well as one of the first female pilots in China. She went into exile in China during the Japanese occupation of Korea, and becam ...
of Korea became the first female licensee of that country in 1925 and after World War II, became instrumental in helping establish the
Republic of Korea Air Force The Republic of Korea Air Force (ROKAF; ko, 대한민국 공군; RR: ''Daehanminguk Gong-gun''), also known as the ROK Air Force or South Korean Air Force, is the aerial warfare service branch of South Korea, operating under the Ministry of N ...
. German Marga von Etzdorf was the first woman to fly for an airline when she began co-piloting for Lufthansa in 1927 and piloting solo on commercial Junkers F13 on 1 February 1928. In the late 1920s, women continued to compete in air races and contests related to flying. In 1929, Pancho Barnes moved to Hollywood to work as the first woman stunt pilot. Besides working on such films as Howard Hughes' '' Hell's Angels'' (1930), she also founded the Associated Motion Pictures Pilots Union in 1931. The first
Women's Air Derby The Women's Air Derby was the first official women-only air race in the United States, taking place during the 1929 National Air Races. Humorist Will Rogers referred to it as the Powder Puff Derby, the name by which the race is most commonly know ...
or Powder Puff Derby, an official women-only race from
Santa Monica, California Santa Monica (; Spanish: ''Santa Mónica'') is a city in Los Angeles County, situated along Santa Monica Bay on California's South Coast. Santa Monica's 2020 U.S. Census population was 93,076. Santa Monica is a popular resort town, owing t ...
to
Cleveland, Ohio Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S. ...
, was held as part of the 1929 National Air Races and was won by
Louise Thaden Iris Louise McPhetridge Thaden (born Louise McPhetridge; November 12, 1905 – November 9, 1979) was an American aviation pioneer, holder of numerous aviation records, and the first woman to win the Bendix trophy, alongside Blanche Noyes. She was ...
.
Marie Marvingt Marie Marvingt (20 February 1875 – 14 December 1963) was a French athlete, mountaineer, aviator, and journalist. She won numerous prizes for her sporting achievements including those of swimming, cycling, mountain climbing, winter sports, ballo ...
of France, who had first proposed the idea of using airplanes as
ambulance An ambulance is a medically equipped vehicle which transports patients to treatment facilities, such as hospitals. Typically, out-of-hospital medical care is provided to the patient during the transport. Ambulances are used to respond to medi ...
s in 1912 continued to promote her idea successfully in the 1920s. During the
French colonial wars The French colonial empire () comprised the overseas colonies, protectorates and mandate territories that came under French rule from the 16th century onward. A distinction is generally made between the "First French Colonial Empire", that exist ...
, Marvingt evacuated injured military personnel with ''Aviation Sanitaire'', a flying ambulance service. Canadian
Eileen Vollick Eileen Vollick (2 August 1908 – 27 September 1968) became Canada's first licensed female pilot on 13 March 1928. She was also the first Canadian woman to parachute into water.Allen, Shirley''Canadian99s''. Retrieved: 26 June 2010. Early li ...
became the first licensed female pilot in 1928 at age 19, and Elsie MacGill became the first woman to earn a master's degree in
aeronautical engineering Aerospace engineering is the primary field of engineering concerned with the development of aircraft and spacecraft. It has two major and overlapping branches: aeronautical engineering and astronautical engineering. Avionics engineering is sim ...
in 1929.
Janet Hendry Janet Hendry (23 October 1906– 21 February 2004) was one of the pioneers of Scottish aviation and had the distinction of being the first woman pilot in Scotland. Early life Janet Hendry was born in Ardrossan, Ayrshire on 23 October 1906 to Ann ...
became the first woman pilot in Scotland, earning her "A" licence on 3 December 1928. On November 2, 1929, at Curtiss Field in
Valley Stream, New York Valley Stream is a village in Nassau County, on Long Island, in New York, United States. The population in the Village of Valley Stream was 37,511 at the 2010 census. The incorporated Village of Valley Stream is within the Town of Hempstead, ...
, 26 women pilots gathered and formed an international organization to provide mutual support for advancing women pilots and named themselves the
Ninety-Nines The Ninety-Nines: International Organization of Women Pilots, also known as The 99s, is an international organization that provides networking, mentoring, and flight scholarship opportunities to recreational and professional female pilots. Foun ...
, after the number or charter members.


1930s

The 1929 stock market crash and ensuing depression, coupled with more stringent safety regulations, caused many of the flying circuses and barnstorming circuits to fold. During the decade, options for women pilots 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 ...
were limited mainly to sales, marketing, racing and
barnstorming Barnstorming was a form of entertainment in which stunt pilots performed tricks individually or in groups that were called flying circuses. Devised to "impress people with the skill of pilots and the sturdiness of planes," it became popular in ...
and being an instructor pilot. In 1930,
Ellen Church Ellen Church (September 22, 1904 – August 22, 1965) was the first female flight attendant. A trained nurse and pilot, Church wanted to pilot commercial aircraft, but those jobs were not open to women. Still wanting to fly, Church successf ...
, a pilot who was unable to secure work flying, proposed to airline executives that women be allowed to act as hostesses on planes. She was hired on a three-month trial basis by
Boeing Air Transport United Airlines is the third largest airline in the world, with 86,852 employees (which includes the entire holding company United Airlines Holdings) and 721 aircraft. It was the brainchild of William Boeing and emerged from his consolidation of n ...
and selected the first seven flight attendants for airlines. These first flight attendants were required to be under 115 pounds, nurses and unmarried. Various "firsts" were achieved by women in the 1930s. In 1930, English aviator
Amy Johnson Amy Johnson (born 1 July 1903 – disappeared 5 January 1941) was a pioneering English pilot who was the first woman to fly solo from London to Australia. Flying solo or with her husband, Jim Mollison, she set many long-distance records du ...
, made the first England to Australia flight by a woman. The same year, inspired to learn to fly by Johnson's flight,
Mrs Victor Bruce Mildred Mary Petre (10 November 1895 – 21 May 1990) was a British record-breaking racing motorist, speedboat racer and aviator in the 1920s and 1930s, and later, successful businesswoman. Commonly referred to as Mrs Victor Bruce, she was also k ...
became the first person to fly from England to Japan, the first to fly across the Yellow Sea, and the first woman to fly around the world alone (crossing the oceans by ship) in her
Bluebird The bluebirds are a North American group of medium-sized, mostly insectivorous or omnivorous birds in the order of Passerines in the genus ''Sialia'' of the thrush family (Turdidae). Bluebirds are one of the few thrush genera in the Americas. ...
plane Antonie Strassmann, a German emigre to the US, became the first woman to successfully cross the Atlantic aboard an aircraft, traveling in May 1932 with a team on a
Dornier Do X The Dornier Do X was the largest, heaviest, and most powerful flying boat in the world when it was produced by the Dornier company of Germany in 1929. First conceived by Claude Dornier in 1924, planning started in late 1925 and after over 240 ...
flying boat. In the fall of the same year, Strassmann piloted a
Zeppelin A Zeppelin is a type of rigid airship named after the German inventor Count Ferdinand von Zeppelin () who pioneered rigid airship development at the beginning of the 20th century. Zeppelin's notions were first formulated in 1874Eckener 1938, pp ...
from Germany to
Pernambuco Pernambuco () is a States of Brazil, state of Brazil, located in the Northeast Region, Brazil, Northeast region of the country. With an estimated population of 9.6 million people as of 2020, making it List of Brazilian states by population, sev ...
in Brazil. On 19 September 1931, the first all women's flying meeting in the UK was organised by Molly Olney and Mrs Harold Brown through the Northamptonshire Aero Club, at Sywell. In May 1932, American Amelia Earhart became the first woman to fly solo across the Atlantic. She urged the public to encourage and enable young women to become airplane pilots and in 1936 and 1937, she taught students at
Purdue University Purdue University is a public land-grant research university in West Lafayette, Indiana, and the flagship campus of the Purdue University system. The university was founded in 1869 after Lafayette businessman John Purdue donated land and money ...
, which was "one of the few U.S. colleges to offer aviation classes to women". In 1933, Lotfia ElNadi became the first
Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediter ...
ian woman and first
Arab The Arabs (singular: Arab; singular ar, عَرَبِيٌّ, DIN 31635: , , plural ar, عَرَب, DIN 31635: , Arabic pronunciation: ), also known as the Arab people, are an ethnic group mainly inhabiting the Arab world in Western Asia, ...
woman to earn a pilot's license. That same year,
Marina Raskova Marina Mikhaylovna Raskova ( rus, Мари́на Миха́йловна Раско́ва, , mɐˈrʲinə mʲɪˈxajləvnə rɐˈskovə; née Malinina; 28 March 1912 – 4 January 1943) was the first woman in the Soviet Union to achieve the diploma ...
became the first Russian woman
navigator A navigator is the person on board a ship or aircraft responsible for its navigation.Grierson, MikeAviation History—Demise of the Flight Navigator FrancoFlyers.org website, October 14, 2008. Retrieved August 31, 2014. The navigator's primar ...
for the
Soviet Air Forces The Soviet Air Forces ( rus, Военно-воздушные силы, r=Voyenno-vozdushnyye sily, VVS; literally "Military Air Forces") were one of the air forces of the Soviet Union. The other was the Soviet Air Defence Forces. The Air Forces ...
. The following year she began teaching as the first female instructor at the
Zhukovsky Air Force Academy Zhukovsky Air Force Engineering Academy () – is a higher military educational institution for training and retraining of engineers for the Russian Air Force. The academy trains specialists – engineers, research engineers in the following sp ...
and then in 1935 received her certification as a
flight instruments Flight instruments are the instruments in the cockpit of an aircraft that provide the pilot with data about the flight situation of that aircraft, such as altitude, airspeed, vertical speed, heading and much more other crucial information in f ...
trainer.
Hazel Ying Lee Hazel Ying Lee (; August 24, 1912 – November 25, 1944) was an American pilot who flew for the Women Airforce Service Pilots (WASP) during World War II. Early life Lee was born in Portland, Oregon. Her parents were Yuet Lee and Ssiu Lan Wong, f ...
, a dual American-Chinese citizen, earned her pilot's license in 1932 in the United States. She went to China to volunteer to serve in the Chinese Army after the
Japanese invasion of Manchuria The Empire of Japan's Kwantung Army invaded Manchuria on 18 September 1931, immediately following the Mukden Incident. At the war's end in February 1932, the Japanese established the puppet state of Manchukuo. Their occupation lasted until the ...
, but was rejected due to her sex. In 1934, Chinese actress
Lee Ya-Ching Li Xiaqing or Lee Ya-Ching (; 16 April 1912 – 28 January 1998), also known by her stage name Li Dandan (), was a Chinese film actress, pioneering aviator, and philanthropist. She was the first Chinese woman to be granted a civil aviation licen ...
obtained a pilot's license in Switzerland; the following year, she obtained the first license for a woman from the American
Boeing School of Aeronautics The Boeing School of Aeronautics was started by Boeing to compete against the Wright brothers' Wright Flying School and Curtiss Flying School in San Diego, California. Founded in 1929 at Oakland Municipal Airport in Oakland, California, the school ...
; and, in 1936, she became the first woman licensed by China as a pilot. She went on to found a civilian flying school in Shanghai that same year. In 1935,
Nancy Bird Walton Nancy Bird Walton, (16 October 1915 – 13 January 2009) was a pioneering Australian aviator, known as "The Angel of the Outback", and the founder and patron of the Australian Women Pilots' Association. In the 1930s, she became a fully ...
obtained the first Australian license allowing a woman to carry passengers so that she could fly an ambulance service for the
Royal Far West Children's Health Scheme Royal Far West is an Australian charity based in Manly, New South Wales, that connects Australian country children to the developmental care they need. Founded in 1924 by Methodist missionary Reverend Stanley Drummond from Cobar, today Royal Fa ...
. She later founded the Australian Women Pilots' Association. That same year, Phyllis Doreen Hooper earned the first women pilot's license in
South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...
. The following year, she became the first female licensed as a commercial pilot and within 2 years had become the first South African woman flight instructor. In France, Suzanne Melk, was the first known women in her country to fly and the first women in
Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...
to receive a pilot's license in 1935. Sarla Thakral was first Indian woman to fly, earning her aviation pilot license in 1936 in a Gypsy Moth solo. She later completed over 1000 hours of flight time. In 1936,
Hanna Reitsch Hanna Reitsch (29 March 1912 – 24 August 1979) was a German aviator and test pilot. Along with Melitta von Stauffenberg, she flight tested many of Germany's new aircraft during World War II and received many honors. Reitsch was amon ...
of Germany became one of the first persons to fly a fully controllable
helicopter A helicopter is a type of rotorcraft in which lift and thrust are supplied by horizontally spinning rotors. This allows the helicopter to take off and land vertically, to hover, and to fly forward, backward and laterally. These attributes ...
and within two years, she earned the first woman helicopter pilot's license. Women had been barred from prestigious Bendix Race following the death of Florence Klingensmith, but were allowed to compete from 1935. In 1936, women not only took first place, but also second and fifth. The winners were
Louise Thaden Iris Louise McPhetridge Thaden (born Louise McPhetridge; November 12, 1905 – November 9, 1979) was an American aviation pioneer, holder of numerous aviation records, and the first woman to win the Bendix trophy, alongside Blanche Noyes. She was ...
and
Blanche Noyes Blanche Noyes (June 23, 1900 – October 6, 1981) was an American pioneering female aviator who was among the first ten women to receive a transport pilot's license. In 1929, she became Ohio's first licensed female pilot. Biography She was bo ...
.
Laura Ingalls Laura Elizabeth Ingalls Wilder (February 7, 1867 – February 10, 1957) was an American writer, mostly known for the ''Little House on the Prairie'' series of children's books, published between 1932 and 1943, which were based on her childhood ...
came second and Earhart was fifth. In 1938, the race was won by
Jacqueline Cochran Jacqueline Cochran (May 11, 1906 – August 9, 1980) was an American pilot and business executive. She pioneered women's aviation as one of the most prominent racing pilots of her generation. She set numerous records and was the first woman to br ...
. In 1937,
Sabiha Gökçen Sabiha Gökçen (; 22 March 1913 – 22 March 2001) was a Turkish aviator. During her flight career, she flew around 8,000 hours and participated in 32 different military operations. She was the world's first female fighter pilot, aged 23. As a ...
of Turkey became the first trained woman combat pilot, participating in search operations and bombing flights during the Dersim Rebellion. While Gökçen was not the first to have participated in military operations, she was the first woman to have been trained as a military pilot, graduating from the Aircraft School (Tayyare Mektebi) in
Eskişehir Eskişehir ( , ; from "old" and "city") is a city in northwestern Turkey and the capital of the Eskişehir Province. The urban population of the city is 898,369 with a metropolitan population of 797,708. The city is located on the banks of the ...
. In 1939, the South African Women's Aviation Association (SAWAA) was formed with 110 women members. Colloquially known as the Women's Civil Air Guard, within the year, membership had swelled to between 3000 and 4000 members. With the outbreak of war, the organization changed focus to become the Women's Auxiliary of the
South African Air Force "Through hardships to the stars" , colours = , colours_label = , march = , mascot = , anniversaries = , equipment ...
.


1940s

As
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 ...
began, women became involved in combat. In the United States, prior to the war, pilots typically flew only in good weather, so that they could judge ground position. Flying in combat required pilots to fly in varying conditions, and a push for instrument training began. By 1944, around 6,000 women had been trained as
Link Trainer The term Link Trainer, also known as the "Blue box" and "Pilot Trainer" is commonly used to refer to a series of flight simulators produced between the early 1930s and early 1950s by Link Aviation Devices, founded and headed by Ed Link, based o ...
operators and were teaching male pilots how to read instruments.
WAVES Waves most often refers to: *Waves, oscillations accompanied by a transfer of energy that travel through space or mass. *Wind waves, surface waves that occur on the free surface of bodies of water. Waves may also refer to: Music *Waves (band) ...
like Patricia W. Malone transitioned after the war to commercial
flight simulation A flight simulator is a device that artificially re-creates aircraft flight and the environment in which it flies, for pilot training, design, or other purposes. It includes replicating the equations that govern how aircraft fly, how they rea ...
instruction, where women dominated the industry of flight training operators. In 1939,
Jacqueline Cochran Jacqueline Cochran (May 11, 1906 – August 9, 1980) was an American pilot and business executive. She pioneered women's aviation as one of the most prominent racing pilots of her generation. She set numerous records and was the first woman to br ...
wrote to the first lady,
Eleanor Roosevelt Anna Eleanor Roosevelt () (October 11, 1884November 7, 1962) was an American political figure, diplomat, and activist. She was the first lady of the United States from 1933 to 1945, during her husband President Franklin D. Roosevelt's four ...
, about using women pilots in the military. Later,
Nancy Harkness Love Nancy Harkness Love (February 14, 1914 – October 22, 1976), born Hannah Lincoln Harkness, was an American pilot and airplane commander during World War II. She earned her pilot's license at age 16. She worked as a test pilot and air racer in t ...
also made a similar request to the US Army, however both women's ideas were put on hold until 1942. Love was then put in command of the Women's Auxiliary Ferrying Squadron AFS which developed a reputation for quiet efficiency and became a well-respected unit. General Henry Arnold on September 14, 1942, put Cochran in charge of a new program called the Army Air Forces
Women's Flying Training Detachment The Women's Flying Training Detachment was a group of women pilots during World War II. Their main job was to take over male pilot's jobs, such as ferrying planes from factories to United States Army Air Force installations, in order to free male pi ...
(WFTD). By August 5, 1943, the WFTD was merged with the WAFS to form the
Women Airforce Service Pilots The Women Airforce Service Pilots (WASP) (also Women's Army Service Pilots or Women's Auxiliary Service Pilots) was a civilian women pilots' organization, whose members were United States federal civil service employees. Members of WASP became t ...
(WASP). The WASPs supported the military in various ways, flying new planes from
factories A factory, manufacturing plant or a production plant is an industrial facility, often a complex consisting of several buildings filled with machinery, where workers manufacture items or operate machines which process each item into another. T ...
to Army Air Force bases, worked as test pilots, worked as flying chauffeurs and helped tow targets for
antiaircraft Anti-aircraft warfare, counter-air or air defence forces is the battlespace response to aerial warfare, defined by NATO as "all measures designed to nullify or reduce the effectiveness of hostile air action".AAP-6 It includes surface based, ...
gunnery practice. The WASPs never gained full military benefits, the organization was disbanded in December 1944. WASPs finally earned veteran status retroactively in 1979. Besides working as women pilots, American women also started working as
air traffic controller Air traffic control specialists, abbreviated ATCS, are personnel responsible for the safe, orderly, and expeditious flow of air traffic in the global air traffic control system. Usually stationed in air traffic control centers and control ...
s during WWII. Commander Frances Biadosz was the only WAVE to wear wings for air-navigation during World War II. Women in the United States were also hired by the
National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics The National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA) was a United States federal agency founded on March 3, 1915, to undertake, promote, and institutionalize aeronautical research. On October 1, 1958, the agency was dissolved and its assets ...
(NACA) to work as scientists and engineers, as well as analysts, reviewing data from windtunnels on airplane prototypes. In 1940, Major Phyllis Dunning (née Phyllis Doreen Hooper) became the first South African woman to enter full-time military service as the Commander of the South African Women's Auxiliary Air Force (SAWAAF). In 1941, the Southern Rhodesia Women's Auxiliary Air Service was commissioned. Within a few months over 100 women recruits were providing clerical services, sewing skills, parachute packing, and serving as drivers, equipment assistants and mechanics. The Air Transport Auxiliary (ATA), a British civilian operation during World War II, had 166 women pilots, (one in eight of all ATA pilots) under the command of
Pauline Gower Pauline Mary de Peauly Gower Fahie (22 July 1910 – 2 March 1947) was a British pilot and writer who established the women's branch of the Air Transport Auxiliary during the Second World War. Early life and education Pauline Mary de Peauly ...
. The first eight women pilots,
Joan Hughes Joan Lily Amelia Hughes, MBE (27 April 1918 – 16 August 1993) was a World War II ferry pilot and one of Britain's first female test pilots. She was considered a capable instructor and flew everything except flying boats. Early life Hughe ...
,
Margaret Cunnison Margaret Cunnison (29 May 1914 – 4 January 2004) was a Scottish aviator and the first Scottish woman flying instructor. She was one of the first women to join the Air Transport Auxiliary. Life Margaret Cunnison was born in Haddington in 1914. ...
, Mona Friedlander, Rosemary Rees, Marion Wilberforce, Margaret Fairweather, Gabrielle Patterson, and Winifred Crossley Fair were accepted into service on 1 January 1940. Fifteen of these women pilots lost their lives in the air, including British recordbreaking aviator
Amy Johnson Amy Johnson (born 1 July 1903 – disappeared 5 January 1941) was a pioneering English pilot who was the first woman to fly solo from London to Australia. Flying solo or with her husband, Jim Mollison, she set many long-distance records du ...
and Canadian born Elsie Joy Davison, Joy Davison. Ida Veldhuyzen van Zanten was the only Dutch woman in the ATA, having escaped the occupied Netherlands as an Engelandvaarder. Margot Duhalde, a Chilean woman, flew transport missions for the ATA during World War II and after the war became the first woman pilot of the French Air Force, flying transports to Morocco. For her services, Duhalde was made a Knight of the Legion of Honour in 1946. Valérie André, a neurosurgeon and member of the French army, became the first woman to fly a helicopter in combat, while serving in Indochina (1945). The Royal Canadian Air Force created a Royal Canadian Air Force Women's Division, Women's Division in 1942, offering women 2/3 the pay of their male counterparts. Though barred from combat and flying, women performed aircraft maintenance and served in air traffic control, in addition to other duties. By the end of the war, over 17,000 Canadian women had served in the Women's Division either at home or abroad. Korean , who had earned her pilot's license in 1927, joined the
Republic of Korea Air Force The Republic of Korea Air Force (ROKAF; ko, 대한민국 공군; RR: ''Daehanminguk Gong-gun''), also known as the ROK Air Force or South Korean Air Force, is the aerial warfare service branch of South Korea, operating under the Ministry of N ...
in 1948 and was appointed first lieutenant. She was the founding commander of the Women's Air Force Corps in 1949, but was captured and taken to North Korea when the Korean War broke out. Unlike other countries fighting in WWII, the Soviet Union created an all-woman combat flight unit, the 588th Night-Bomber Air-Regiment or the Night Witches. This group of the
Soviet Air Forces The Soviet Air Forces ( rus, Военно-воздушные силы, r=Voyenno-vozdushnyye sily, VVS; literally "Military Air Forces") were one of the air forces of the Soviet Union. The other was the Soviet Air Defence Forces. The Air Forces ...
, flew harassment bombing and precision bombing missions from 1942 to the end of the World War II. The organization was first formed by Joseph Stalin on October 8, 1941, and all of the women were volunteers. The Night Witches flew 30,000 missions and "dumped 23,000 tons of bombs on the German invaders": the unit was granted both 'Guards' status and a battle-honour: 'Taman-sky' (for their work during the Battle of Taman), and was therefore re-numbered to finish the war as the 46th 'Tamansky' Guards Night-Bomber Air-Regiment. The Soviets also had the only women to be considered flying aces. Lydia Litvyak was credited with different numbers of kills from various sources, but in 1990, the tally was given as 12 solo kills and 3 shared kills. Yekaterina Budanova fought combat missions over Saratov and Volgograd, Stalingrad and was credited with 11 kills. In 1948, Ada Rogato, Brazil's first licensed woman pilot, became the first female agricultural pilot when she was hired by the government to crop dust coffee fields and eliminate the Ptinidae, borer beetle that was plaguing the crop. The following year, Rogato became the first woman to fly solo over the Andes and in 1951, flew from Tierra del Fuego to Alaska, a solo flight which would take her across South America, Central America and North America. In 1948, Isabella Ribeiro de Cabral, who became Isabella de Freitas the following year, became the first woman pilot of Trinidad and Tobago. It would be another forty years, in 1988, before the first Trinidadian woman, Wendy Yawching became a captain.


1950s

In 1951, the People's Liberation Army Air Force (PLAAF) of China enrolled 55 women trainees. When they graduated, the following year, the women represented 6 Aircraft Communications Addressing and Reporting System, communication operators, 5 navigators, 30 Aircraft maintenance technician, on-board aircraft mechanics and 14 pilots. A second class of 160 trainees entered PLAAF in 1956, but only 44 of them completed their training. In late 1952, with the Korean War in full swing, the North Korean Air Force was the only one in the world with female jet fighter pilots. One of them, Tha Sen Hi, flew MiG-15s in combat and eventually rose to squadron leader. She was honoured with the title of Hero of the Korean People's Democratic Republic. In 1952, Earsley Barnett, American wife of Major Carl Barnett, founder of Wings Jamaica, earned the first pilot license granted to a woman in Jamaica. She later became the first Jamaican flight instructor, as well as a commercial pilot.
Jacqueline Cochran Jacqueline Cochran (May 11, 1906 – August 9, 1980) was an American pilot and business executive. She pioneered women's aviation as one of the most prominent racing pilots of her generation. She set numerous records and was the first woman to br ...
became the first woman to break the sound barrier in 1953. By June 1953, she was the holder of "all but one of the principal world airplane speed records for straightaway and closed-course flight" for women. During the Korean War, former WASPs were asked to join active duty in the United States Air Force, Air Force. Thirteen percent of the WAVES recruits by 1952 were air selected for air training, which included positions as air control personnel, aerographer's mates, electronics technicians and as other support personnel. In 1953, the WAVES lifted a ban on women serving as mechanics. was the only South Korean woman to serve as a pilot in the ROK Air Force during the Korean War. Organisations were formed, such as the Australian Women Pilots' Association, Australia Women Pilots' Association (AWPA). Another organization was the Whirly-Girls, started by Jean Ross Howard Phelan in 1955 for women helicopter pilots. She started the group as an informal interest group, but formalized it in order to better help the members network and support each other in the male-dominated field. Pakistan modeled its air force on the Royal Air Force, British Royal Air Force during the late 1950s. This allowed for more women to become involved in the military in Pakistan. In 1958 Dorothy Rungeling of Canada became her country's first woman to solo pilot a helicopter. In the 1950s and 1960s, air travel was expensive and few people of color could afford to fly. U.S. segregation laws were slowly being overturned to lift barriers for not only travel, but for employment opportunities. Coupled with the influx of workers from the Indian subcontinent and the Caribbean, and the independence movements in Africa and the Caribbean, British need for labor in the post-war period made recruiting of 'coloured labour' in the same period a necessity. The following decades would increasingly see more women from former colonies enter aviation.


1960s

In the 1960s, stewardesses, as female flight attendants were known, were considered glamorous and exotic adventurers. Frank Sinatra's song ''Come Fly with Me (Frank Sinatra album), Come Fly with Me'' gave birth to the jet set. Adding to the allure, Bernard Glemser's novel, ''Girl on a Wing'', and the British movie based on it, ''Come Fly with Me (film), Come Fly with Me'' (1963), depicted stewardesses as stylish seekers of romance. Wearing custom-fitted uniforms, attendants were career women, whose looks, marital status and childlessness were guarded by industry executives, much as Hollywood starlets had been. On the one hand, they were to project an ideal of womanhood, but on the other, they were used to sell airline travel through their sexuality. The double standard that they faced as well as the glamorous lifestyle they lived, shot to the best-seller's list with the publication in 1967 of the book, ''Coffee, Tea or Me?'' In 1963, stewardesses who held a press conference on airlines' policy of retiring stewardesses at 32, caught the attention of the country. The press conference focused attention on the airlines narrow standard of "feminine allure". In 1960, Olga Tarling became the first woman
air traffic controller Air traffic control specialists, abbreviated ATCS, are personnel responsible for the safe, orderly, and expeditious flow of air traffic in the global air traffic control system. Usually stationed in air traffic control centers and control ...
in Australia and Yvonne Sintes, Yvonne Pope Sintes and Frankie O'Kane become the first female British air traffic controllers. That same year, Alia Menchari became the first woman Tunisian pilot. In 1961, Lucille Golas attained the first pilot license for a woman in Guyana to assist her husband in his mining business. Asegedech Assefa became the first Ethiopian woman to earn a pilot's license in 1962. That same year, Jacqueline Cochran became the first woman to fly a jet across the Atlantic Ocean. She was also the first woman to break the sound barrier. Throughout the decade, she and Jacqueline Auriol of France traded women's speed and distance records what would be known as the "battle of the Jackies". A privately funded project, of William Randolph Lovelace II, William Lovelace, the Mercury 13, Woman in Space Program recruited women pilots in the U.S. to test them for suitability for the space program. Thirteen of the recruits passed NASA's physical requirements. Scheduled for additional testing, the United States Navy canceled use of their facilities as there were no NASA officials involved. Public hearings were held by a special Subcommittee of the House Committee on Science and Astronautics in 1962. Because NASA required all astronauts to attain an engineering degree and be graduates of military jet piloting test programs, none of the women could meet the entry prerequisites. The subcommittee took no action after the hearing. The following year, Valentina Tereshkova, an amateur Russian parachute jumper became the first woman in space. In 1963, Betty Miller (pilot), Betty Miller became the first woman to fly solo across the Pacific Ocean and Anne Spoerry, a French doctor living in Kenya became the first female member of the Amref Health Africa, African Medical and Research Foundation's "Flying Doctors", operating her plane through the bush to provide needed medical assistance in remote areas. In 1964, women again made history when Jerrie Mock, Geraldine Mock became the first woman to Circumnavigation, circumnavigate the globe. In 1966, Soviet pilot Galina Gavrilovna Korchuganova competed at the World Aerobatic Championship in Moscow and won gold in the women's individual competition, becoming the first women's world aerobatics champion. Because of the unpopularity of the Vietnam War in the United States, men were not volunteering at high enough rates; however, many women were being turned away because of limits on women's work in the military. In 1967, a law was passed allowing more women into the military and to be promoted to high ranks. In 1969, Kucki Low, Kucki von Gerlach obtained the first pilot's license issued to a woman in South West Africa, now Namibia. That same year, Turi Widerøe of Norway became the first female pilot for Scandinavian Airlines. Turi Widerøe had for years been a pilot for her father's company Widerøe, which today is the largest regional airline in the Scandinavian countries. Turi Widerøe is still today recognized as the western world's first woman commercial pilot for a major airlines after she joined Scandinavian Airlines in 1967.


1970s

Until the 1970s, aviation had been a traditionally male occupation in the United States. Commerce Department regulations virtually required pilots to have flown in the military to acquire sufficient flight hours, and until the 1970s, the U.S. Air Force and Navy barred women from flying and they were routinely denied work in commercial piloting. The US military did not open fighter jet flights to women until 1993. Women eventually began to enter U.S. major commercial aviation in the 1970s and 1980s, with 1973 seeing the first female pilot at a major U.S. airline, American Airlines. American also promoted the first female captain of a major U.S. airline in 1986 and the following year had the first all-woman flight crew. In other countries, women were starting to fly as pilots, such as Turi Widerøe, who was hired in late 1968, for Scandinavian Airlines, Scandinavian Airlines System and Aeroflot had already hired women pilots. In the 1970s, women were again, for the first time since WWII, permitted to fly in the United States Armed Forces, beginning with the Navy and the Army in 1974, and then the Air Force in 1976. By the mid-1970s, women were predicting that there would be a large increase in female pilots because of the Feminist movement, women's liberation movement. Louise Sacchi was the first international woman ferry pilot who flew planes across the Atlantic and Pacific oceans over 340 times, more than any other non-airline pilot. In 1971, she set a women's speed record by flying a single-engine land plane from New York to London in 17 hours and 10 minutes, a record that still stands today. Sacchi was the first woman to win the Godfrey L. Cabot Award for distinguished service to aviation. The first graduating class of ten female Air Force officers earned their Silver Wings on September 2, 1977. These ten women were part of Class 77-08 and graduated at Williams Air Force Base. In 1978, a group of former WASPs formed the Women's Military Pilots Association (WMPA). In 1975, Yola Cain became the first Jamaican-born commercial pilot and flight instructor. The following year, Cain became the first female pilot with the Jamaica Defence Force and in the 1980s would become the first woman pilot for Air Jamaica Express, TransJamaica Ltd. Four years later, in 1979, Jamaican Maria Ziadie-Haddad became one of the first women in the Western Hemisphere to become a commercial jet airline pilot when she was hired as the first woman pilot of Air Jamaica, as a Boeing 727 second officer. Another Jamaican, Michele Yap, became the first female airline captain in the Caribbean flying the LIAT, Leeward Islands Air Transport's de Havilland Canada DHC-6 Twin Otter, Twin Otter in 1988. The following year, Captain Yap was the first to pilot an all-female crew in the Anglo-Caribbean. On 9 September 1976, Asli Hassan Abade soloed her first flight as the only female pilot in the Somali Air Force. In 1977, Cheryl Pickering-Moore and Beverley Drake of Guyana became the first two women pilots of the Guyana Defence Force. Drake was transferred a few months later as the first female pilot of the Guyana Airways Corporation, she would go on in the 1990s to become the first woman and African-American senior inspection analyst working for the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board. Jill Brown-Hiltz joined Texas International Airlines as a pilot in 1978, becoming the first African American woman to fly for a commercial airline in the United States. That same year, Chinyere Kalu, at the time Chinyere Onyenucheya became, Nigeria, Nigeria's first female pilot. In 1979, Koh Chai Hong became the first woman pilot in the Republic of Singapore Air Force (RSAF). Continuing her military career, Koh became one of the first two female Lieutenant-Colonels in 1999. Bahamas, Bahamian Patrice Washington, Patrice Clarke, later Washington, entered Embry–Riddle Aeronautical University, Daytona Beach in 1979. Three years later she would become the school's first black woman to graduate with a BS in aeronautical science and her commercial pilot's certification. She would go on to become the first woman pilot hired by Bahamasair and later the first black female to command airplanes in the U.S. for a major carrier service when she was promoted to captain by United Parcel Service (UPS) in 1994. In 1977, Barbara Ann Christie was recorded as the first woman police pilot in the United States by the American Business Reference Inc. while working for Horsham Township Police Department in Pennsylvania. She contributed in excess of 1,000 hours of personal time to the Air Ambulance and Helicopter Unit without remuneration of any kind.


Close of the twentieth century

At the close of the century, legal efforts to eliminate barriers of race and sexism in the aviation sector resulted in industry modifications in hiring practices. In the United States, in the late 1970s the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission found violations of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which the court monitored over the next decades and decreed in 1995 had been sufficiently addressed. In Africa, lack of a strong national carrier resulted in many tourism routes being overtaken by European airlines, but growth in the sector during the 1980s and 1990s saw that 26% of the market share on intercontinental flights were run by Africans. In Latin America and the Caribbean, growth in the tourism sector through the 1990s, led to dramatic expansion of the civil aviation sector, with many countries seeing airport expansions. In military services, women's roles increased during the period in North America, Europe and Asia. In 1980, Lynn Rippelmeyer of the U.S. became the first woman to fly a Boeing 747 and four years later became the first woman to serve as captain on the craft. That same year, Olive Ann Beech was awarded the Wright Brothers Memorial Trophy from the U.S. National Aeronautic Association, for aircraft manufacturing. In 1981, Mary Crawford (pilot), Mary Crawford became the first women's flight officer in the United States Navy and that same year Yichida Ndlovu would earn the first civilian female pilot's license in Zambia. Unable to join the British Royal Air Force or local cadet forces, Elizabeth Jennings Clark of St. Lucia found a private scholarship program to offset the high-cost of training. She became the first female pilot for LIAT when she finished her training in 1983. That same year, Charlotte Larson and Deanne Schulman made history when Larson became the first woman to captain a Smokejumper, smoke jumper aircraft and Schulman became the first woman qualified as a smoke jumper. In Canada the Air Force started a trial program for women pilots in 1979
Dee Brasseur
was one of the four selected and in 1988 became one of the two first women in the world to fly the F-18 jet fighter. Khatool Mohammadzai became the first Afghans, Afghan woman paratrooper in 1984, the same year that Beverly Burns first served as captain on a Boeing 747 for a cross-country trip. In 1986, Rebecca Mpagi joined Uganda's National Resistance Army as its first woman pilot. She would continue to rise in the ranks until by 2008, Mpagi was a Lieutenant Colonel, serving as the head of women affairs for the Uganda People's Defence Force. In 1987, British Airways, British Airlines hired their first woman pilot, Lynn Barton, Lynne Barton. and that same year Erma Johnson became the first black and first woman chair of the Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport's Board of Directors. Sakhile Nyoni , a Zimbabwean woman, became the first woman pilot in Botswana in 1988. The following year the Afghan Air Force admitted Latifa Nabizada and her sister, Laliuma, as the first women to train at the military flight school. The sisters would graduate from helicopter school in 1991 becoming the first women Afghani pilots. Canadians Dee Brasseur, Deanne Brasseur and Jane Foster (Canadian pilot), Jane Foster were the first women to fly military aircraft in Canada in 1989. Although five women officers had qualified as Royal Air Force (RAF) pilots in the 1950s, the RAF did not allow women to pursue a career in flying until Julie Ann Gibson and Sally Cox become the RAF's first career pilots in 1990. On July 31 of 1991, the United States Senate lifted the ban on military women flying in combat. By 1998, US military women were flying combat missions from aircraft carriers. In 1992, the first female helicopter pilot to fly in Antarctica was a military officer, Judy Chesser Coffman, of the United States Navy. That same year, Lt. Kelly J. Franke of the United States Navy was the first woman pilot to be awarded the Naval Helicopter Association Pilot of the Year Award. Lt. Franke flew 105 support missions with HSC-2's Desert Ducks detachment in Bahrain and was cited for extraordinary aviation achievements for 664.2 hours of accident free flight hours. While there were many African American women in the US military, it was 1993 before Matice Wright became the first black woman flight officer in the United States Navy. That same year, Nina Tapula became the first woman military pilot of Zambia. Harita Kaur Deol became the first female solo pilot in the Indian Air Force, in September 1994, flying an Avro HS-748 at the age of 22. Chipo Matimba became the first woman to complete the Air Force of Zimbabwe's pilot training course in 1996. On December 17, 1998 Kendra Williams was credited as the first woman pilot to launch missiles in combat during Bombing of Iraq (1998), Operation Desert Fox. In 1999, Caroline Aigle received the French Air Force's fighter pilot wings and was assigned to fly the Dassault Mirage 2000, Mirage 2000-5. In the civilian sector, Veronica Foy became the first woman pilot of Malawi in 1992 and by the close of the decade would become Malawi's first woman captain. The first black female Mawalian pilot, Felistas Magengo-Mkandawire began flying as first officer for Air Malawi in 1995. In 1993, Aurora Carandang became the first woman captain for Philippine Airlines. Asnath Mahapa, the first black
South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...
n woman, became a pilot in 1998, the same year that Nicole Chang Leng became the first woman pilot of the Seychelles. In November 1998, M'Lis Ward became the first African American woman to captain for a major U.S. commercial airline, United Airlines. Also in 1998, Barbara Cassani became CEO of the British airline Go (airline), Go, becoming the first female CEO of a commercial airline. In 1998, Aysha Alhameli of the United Arab Emirates became the first Emirati female pilot. More organizations to support women in aviation careers were formed. The
Ninety-Nines The Ninety-Nines: International Organization of Women Pilots, also known as The 99s, is an international organization that provides networking, mentoring, and flight scholarship opportunities to recreational and professional female pilots. Foun ...
(the 99s) established th
Amelia Earhart Memorial Scholarship Fund
in 1940 to honor her memory and perpetuate her ideals and love of flying. From a single scholarship of $125 in 1941, the annual Amelia Earhart Memorial Scholarship Fund has provided over $12 million in scholarships to women from around the world to advance and succeed in aviation and aerospace. Women in Aviation, International, Women in Aviation International (WAI) formed in 1990 and formalized the organization in 1994. WAI went on to establish the Pioneer Hall of Fame to honor women in aviation who had made special contributions to the field. In 1995, the Federation of European Women Pilots (FEWP) was founded in Rome. and two years later the Association for Women in Aviation Maintenance (AWAM) was formed.


Notable influential profiles and figures in the aviation industry

Over the years since the beginning of the twentieth century, there have been many remarkable moments by women in the aviation industry. However, few were pioneers, and their influence and impact were huge, paving the way for more women to be involved in the different aspects of the aviation industry.
Harriet Quimby Harriet Quimby (May 11, 1875 – July 1, 1912) was an American pioneering aviator, journalist, and film screenwriter. In 1911, she became the first woman in the United States to receive a pilot certificate, issued to her by the Aero Club of Ame ...
– 1875 to 1912 A celebrated pioneer in the United States, Quimby was adventurous and encouraged more women to join the aviation industry. Through her weekly articles in various magazines, she challenged women, and through her visions of airlines to ferry people and scheduled air routes, she made a huge contribution towards the growth and the development of the aviation industry. She warned those who flew aircraft on the dangers of being overconfident and emphasized on the importance of observing safety while piloting . Taught how to fly by John Moisant, Quimby was the first woman to fly across the English Channel. As a contributing journalist in magazines'','' she shared her experiences and the lessons she learned while piloting. In one of her articles entitled 'Aviation as a Feminine Sport' Quimby noted that there was no reason as to why women would not be as confident as their male counterparts. She added that as long as a person observed maximum care, they would not cause any accidents. Quimby had strong belief in the aviation industry of the United States and encouraged more women to take on the air .
Nancy Harkness Love Nancy Harkness Love (February 14, 1914 – October 22, 1976), born Hannah Lincoln Harkness, was an American pilot and airplane commander during World War II. She earned her pilot's license at age 16. She worked as a test pilot and air racer in t ...
– 1914 to 1976 Born in February 1914, Nancy played an instrumental role in the acceptance of women, both as career and military pilots. At the age of 16 years, with only 15 hours of solo time, Nancy flew a plane from Boston to Poughkeepsie, New York, where the weather changed. She did not know how to read the compass, and with the gauge broken, had to land the plane . She safely landed the plane, an event that would mark her 40-year career in the aviation industry. After earning Civil Aeronautics Administration (CAA) instrument rating and a seaplane rating in 1940, Nancy, alongside other 32 pilots, were tasked with flying American airplanes to Canada, from where they would be shipped to France. At the age of 28, she was appointed as the Director of the Women's Auxiliary Ferrying Squadron, WAFS, an organization of women who tested aircraft, ferried aircraft and trained other pilots on how to fly aircraft. This WAFS organization played a pivotal role in the integration of women pilots to the military. Under her command, women flew every type of military aircraft. In addition, through her firm belief that women could still co-exist with men and take on non-traditional roles, more doors were opened for more women in the aviation industry . Jerrie Cobb, Geraldine (Jerrie) Cobb – 1931 to 2019 Born to a commercial pilot in 1931, Jerrie Cobb was the first woman to qualify to go into space. Through the help of her father and football coach, who was a flight instructor and owned a plane, Jerrie learned how to fly, and by the time of her birthday at 17, she got a private pilot's license. Through her savings, which she made while playing softball at semi-professional level, she bought her aircraft, a war surplus Fairchild PT-23. She would later receive her commercial pilot license at the age of 18, permitting her to fly professionally. Jerrie later joined the Lovelace Foundation, where she passed all 75 Mercury astronaut tests. After further tests, Jerry, among the other 11 astronaut candidates were chosen for Project Mercury. Even though she would later be dropped based on lacking jet piloting experience, her contribution to the aviation industry-inspired many other women to join the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and the aviation industry in general.


Current trends in the aviation industry regarding women

Today women's participation in the aviation sector remains low. As of December 2019, just 5.4% (25,485 out of 466,900) of all certified civilian pilots (private and commercial) in the United States were women. In December 1980, there were 26,896 female certified civilian pilots in the United States. As of December 2020, the percentage of female civilian pilots (private and commercial in Canada is 8.15%. Canada has seen an increase to 18% of women in Royal Canadian Air Force jobs. The global average was 3%. Overall, in 2008, there were only 16% of women working in the manufacturing of aircraft and spacecraft. Women who work as Aerospace engineering, aerospace engineers made up only 25% in the field in 2014. Women make up less than 6% of senior executive level positions in airline companies, as of 2015. Pakistani pilot Ayesha Farooq was the first female fighter pilot for the Pakistan Air Force. At least 19 women became pilots in the air force in the decade from 2003.
India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
has been very successful at recruiting women to pilot commercial airliners. In 2014, women made up 11.6% of pilots. Women credit the extended family support systems that exist which help them balance family and career. By 2012, China's PLAAF had trained more than 300 female pilots and over 200 auxiliary air personnel. Large numbers have been trained to fly China's most advanced combat jets, including the Chengdu J-10, J-10. In 2016, Wang Zheng (pilot), Wang Zheng (Julie Wang), now a Silver Airways captain, became the first Asian woman to fly a global circumnavigation and the first Chinese person to pilot an aircraft solo around the world, marking the emergence of women in China's general aviation sector. In Japan, the first female captain for commercial passenger flights was Ari Fuji, who began flying as captain for JAL Express in July 2010. In terms of tourism-driven growth in the aviation sector, throughout the Asia-Pacific, Asia-Pacific region, there is a shortage of pilots, which is driving gender biases to be pushed aside for women to be hired. Vietnam Airlines, a major carrier in one of fastest-growing aviation markets, has created flight-schedules that allow flexibility to deal with personal demands. EasyJet provides scholarships for women pilots to help offset the high cost of training and EVA Air has actively recruited candidates from university programs. In Africa, many of the trained pilots migrate to the Middle East or Asia where opportunities for career advancement and more sophisticated facilities exist. Women Aviators in Africa was founded in 2008 in an attempt to mentor and inspire young women to train in the aviation industry, as estimates for women in the field fall considerably below 6%. Though there is a high level of need across Africa for rural aviation, there is insufficient infrastructure to support expansion. Grass-roots efforts have seen success with training for bush pilots in transport, medical assistance and policing. Efforts are on-going to increase the numbers of women because women are less likely to move to other areas if they as able to find sufficient employment and opportunities in their own communities. As of 2016, seven of the top ten markets in terms of growth-speed of aviation were in Africa. In 2022, Zara Rutherford became the youngest female pilot to fly solo around the world.


Sexism

Women often had to work hard to prove themselves as capable as men in the field. Clare Boothe Luce, Clare Booth Luce wrote, "Because I am a woman, I must make unusual efforts to succeed. If I fail, no one will say, 'She doesn't have what it takes.' They will say, 'Women don't have what it takes.'" Pioneer aviator, Claude Grahame-White felt that women were "not 'temperamentally suited' to handle the controls of an airplane". During the first National
Women's Air Derby The Women's Air Derby was the first official women-only air race in the United States, taking place during the 1929 National Air Races. Humorist Will Rogers referred to it as the Powder Puff Derby, the name by which the race is most commonly know ...
in 1929, women flying the race faced "threats of sabotage and headlines that read, 'Race Should Be Stopped.'" Because flying was considered dangerous, many Aerospace manufacturer, aircraft manufacturers in the late 1920s hired women as sales representatives and flight demonstrators. "The reasoning was that if a woman could fly an airplane, it really could not be that difficult or dangerous." In 1986, a spokesperson for the Air Line Pilots Association, International, Airline Pilot's Association said that the reason there were only two women Boeing 747 captains at the time was "because women in aviation are a relatively recent phenomenon and everything in the airlines industry is done by seniority". In 1934, however, Helen Richey became the first woman to fly a commercial airliner and went on to quit that job in ten months because the all-male pilot's union would not admit her and she rarely got to fly. Biases toward women's traditional roles with men in the cockpit and women serving beverages and blankets have become ingrained, forcing women who want to fly to struggle with the attitudes of both co-workers and society. A survey conducted by Mitchell, Krstivics & Vermeulen in 2005 found that many women pilots were either unaware of sexism directed towards them or had not experienced any sexism directly. However, many women believe that more women are experiencing prejudice than are admitting it.


Diversity in the classroom

Even though in history, women faced exclusion from education, the end of the Civil War signified a new era where women were then allowed to attend classes side by side with the men. More recently, the rates of women attending classes and going through education systems have improved significantly. In 1970, 42.3 percent of the undergraduate students were women, a figure which has grown up to 56.1 percent in 2007. This improvement is key, as it signifies that women have the access to education and training programs than ever before. Contextually, women can access the needed aviation training just like their male counterparts. Therefore, it eliminates the basis of women being incapable of handling particular job profiles and not being capable of working in certain capacities. Thus, women ought to have the same opportunities as men, given the abundance of skills and expertise.


Wage inequalities and career advancement

Wage inequality between men and women has not only been a talking point in the aviation industry but also in other industries where women are paid significantly less than men. Despite possessing the same skills, expertise, and experience, women are not paid the same in the industry. In addition to the skewed wage structure, the organization culture in the industry has continually favored men regarding career advancement up the ladder. Few women advance their careers in the aviation industry as many top positions are held by men. Women have faced a tough time, climbing from the bottom of the ladder up, while men have seamlessly and without a struggle, spend less time at the lower tiers of the career ladder before assuming top positions. In recent attempts to lessen the barrier between men and women in the aviation field programs to help even the playing field have become more abundant. Programs such as A-WING, a program run by over 60 volunteers aims to teach more young women about the aviation job opportunities. The organization is funded through donations which are used to produce educational materials, create speaking and networking opportunities and enable attendance at job fairs and get more women into the aerospace field. Their goal is to increase women in the aerospace job field by 25% by 2025, a goal they call "25 by 25". Programs like these are becoming more prominent in modern society to help with the inequalities in career advancement for women in aviation.


Solutions to gender


Affirmative action

Previous studies demonstrate that affirmative action has compelled women to develop their careers as pilots. It has motivated women to take up the challenges and enter the male-dominated occupation. Following the success of this initiative thus far, albeit unsatisfactorily, it is important that it is continuously implemented to make it easy for women to enter in the aviation industry and progress up the career ladder up to the top management positions. A positive attitude and a change of culture in the aviation industry are needed if men will change their perspective regarding the involvement of women in the aviation industry.


Funding initiatives

Even though the tuition fees for tertiary institutions is not analyzed in this study, receiving the required training and knowledge requires a substantial financial investment. An extensive research found that these tuition and training fees are paid by either parent, the students, or through loans. Given the level of high fees paid during the training, and considering the low incomes paid to women at the start of their careers, it is important that they incentivized in their studies and training. Given the high costs of qualifications, the costly nature of the relevant licenses, and the time consumed, many aviation students end up discontinuing their studies. Therefore, more scholarships to women interested in a career in the aviation industry ought to be availed to ensure that gender equality is achieved in the long term.


Cultural evolution

Attitudes, stereotypes, and prejudices are embedded in culture and have played a significant role in inequality in the aviation industry. It, therefore, important that men are educated on the impact of these attitudes and prejudices against women. They have to be educated on how their behavior affects pilots and why it is important to evolve the culture in the aviation industry. Having an understanding of the impacts of these attitudes helps in forging great relationships and interactions amongst the diverse flight crews. Women also need to be encouraged to take up these careers to address the underlying problem where women have previously been discouraged from pursuing a professional career in aviation.


See also

*Timeline of women in aviation *List of women aviators * Women of Aviation Worldwide Week *Women in Aviation, International *
Ninety-Nines The Ninety-Nines: International Organization of Women Pilots, also known as The 99s, is an international organization that provides networking, mentoring, and flight scholarship opportunities to recreational and professional female pilots. Foun ...


References


Citations


Sources

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Further reading

*Douglas, Deborah G. ''United States Women in Aviation, 1940–1985''. Washington, D.C.: Smithsonian Institution Press, 1990. *Marck, Bernard. ''Women Aviators: From Amelia Earhart to Sally Ride, Making History in Air and Space''. Paris: Flammarion, 2009. * *Oakes, Claudia M. ''United States Women in Aviation Through World War I''. Washington: Smithsonian Institution Press, 1978. *Pennington, Reina, and John Erickson. ''Wings, Women, and War: Soviet Airwomen in World War II Combat''. Lawrence: University Press of Kansas, 2001. *Strebe, Amy Goodpaster. ''Flying for Her Country: The American and Soviet Women Military Pilots of World War II''. Washington, D.C.: Potomac Books, 2009. {{ISBN, 978-1-59797-266-6 Women in history Women aviators, * History of aviation