Amelia Earhart Breaking Barriers in Aviation History

by Ermiyas Abiy, age 8

Amelia Earhart was the first female pilot to fly alone on transatlantic and transpacific flights. She is also known as a pioneer for women aviators.

Amelia was born on July 24, 1897, in Atchison, Kansas. Amelia’s childhood was hard due to many problems. Her dad, Edwin, had alcoholism, and she and her sister, Meriel, lived with their grandparents for 12 years.

During World War I, Amelia went to Toronto with her sister. She got a job as a nursing assistant to care for hurt soldiers. After the war ended, she trained to become a doctor, but her passion was piloting.

When Amelia turned 23, she flew on a plane for the first time. When the plane was just 300 feet in the air, at that moment, Amelia knew she wanted to be a pilot.

Amelia started taking lessons to become a pilot and insisted on having a woman as her instructor. Her instructor was Neta Hook. Neta gave Amelia her first lesson in January 1921, and Amelia bought a small two-seater plane that same year. She named the plane Canary. The plane was bright yellowish in color.

Amelia moved to Boston in 1924. She began social work, yet again; flying was still her passion. During this time, flying was very popular, which meant aviation advanced. In May 1927, Charles Lindbergh was the first to succeed in solo crossing the Atlantic Ocean and landing in Paris. A rich woman agreed to sponsor a transatlantic flight. The woman hired publicist George P. Putnam to find someone suitable. By then, Amelia had become well-known, and he immediately hired her.

Life was improving for Amelia when George hired her. On June 17, 1928, the team set her up in their plane, the Fokker F7. After almost a day, the plane landed successfully in Burry Port, Wales.

Amelia Earhart was in the headlines. She did not pilot but was the first woman to fly over the Atlantic. Newspapers loved her, and she became a public figure. Amelia got married to Putnam not long after, in 1931.

Amelia was getting ready to do one of the most important things in her life: attempt a solo crossing the Atlantic just like Lindbergh did for Paris. There were some problems with the weather at the time, which forced her to land in Ireland. She tried again and succeeded. Before she succeeded in solo crossing the Atlantic, she won the Gold Medal of the National Geographic Society, the Distinguished Flying Cross award, and she became a member of the Légion d'honneur. Next, she was the first person to accomplish the Pacific solo twice.

In 1937, Amelia attempted to fly around the world—her biggest challenge. The weather looked good, and everyone thought she was going to succeed, but the navigator lost contact. The plane crashed, and the rescue search for Amelia lasted 16 days. It also cost the U.S. government $4 million. The rescuers never found Amelia, and the search continues to this day.

Although Amelia's tragic death left behind a great legacy that empowered young women into aviation. Amelia set an example and was a great pilot whose accomplishments inspire many today.

[Source: Women Who Changed the World]