pioneering pilot | Hartzell Propeller

Pioneering Pilot: Wiley Post

Kern Patton — Fri, 27 Sep 2019 20:03:43 +0000

One of America’s most influential early aviators was Wiley Post, who rose to fame during the depths of the Great Depression by breaking numerous aeronautical records and designing and testing the world’s first fully pressurized flying suit and helmet. Wiley Post was born in 1898 to a family of cotton farmers in Cornith, Texas. Growing […]

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Pioneering Pilot: Cal Rodgers

Kern Patton — Fri, 13 Sep 2019 19:31:14 +0000

Once called the “King of the Air,” pioneering pilot Cal Rodgers is best known for completing the first 4,000+ mile transcontinental flight across the U.S. in 1911. Born to a family of distinguished naval heroes, Calbraith (Cal) Perry Rodgers was expected to follow suit. But due to a severe childhood illness that left Rodgers almost […]

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Pioneering Pilot: Dorothy Olsen

Kern Patton — Tue, 27 Aug 2019 12:43:59 +0000

In World War II, more than 25,000 young women applied to become members of the Women Airforce Service Pilots, better known as the WASPs. Only 1,879 women were accepted, and of those, just 1,074 graduated. One of them was 27-year old Dorothy Eleanor Olsen, born in 1916. Dorothy’s love of flying started years before she […]

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Pioneering Pilot: Katherine Stinson

Kern Patton — Tue, 07 Aug 2018 16:37:57 +0000

One of America’s first female pilots earned fame performing in air shows across the country, where she was billed as the “flying schoolgirl” for her youthful appearance. This daring aviatrix was Katherine Stinson, a record-setting pioneer of American aviation who helped pave the way for the pilots of today. Born in 1891 in Fort Payne, […]

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Pioneering Pilot: Lawrence Sperry

Kern Patton — Tue, 03 Jul 2018 13:02:58 +0000

Pioneering pilot Lawrence Sperry made countless contributions to the world of aviation, including an invention that can be found in nearly every airplane in the world: the autopilot. Born in 1892 in Chicago, Sperry was the third son of gyrocompass co-inventor Elmer Ambrose Sperry, who filed more than 400 patents in his lifetime. Taking after […]

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Pioneering Pilot: Harriet Quimby

Kern Patton — Tue, 29 May 2018 16:30:32 +0000

Although her aviation career was brief, pilot Harriet Quimby played an influential role in paving the way for women in aviation. In the early days of flight, Quimby defied the odds and made several aviation firsts, including becoming the first American woman to earn a pilot’s license and the first woman to fly solo across […]

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Pioneering Pilot: Glenn Curtiss

Kern Patton — Thu, 01 Feb 2018 13:37:30 +0000

It’s hard to imagine where the aviation industry would be today without the creative and fearless contributions of Glenn Curtiss. Often considered the “father of naval aviation” and a founder of the American aircraft industry, Curtiss persistently pushed the boundaries of speed and performance to become one of aviation’s greatest pioneers. Born in Hammondsport, New […]

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Pioneering Pilots: Otto Lilienthal

Kern Patton — Tue, 19 Sep 2017 12:35:05 +0000

“To invent an airplane is nothing,” Otto Lilienthal said. “To build one is something. But to fly is everything.” These words were the motto of the German aviation pioneer, who spent his life constructing innovative glider designs and experimenting with flight, serving as an inspiration to the next generation of aviators. Born in 1848 in […]

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