Amazing Women in the Skies
By Rhodeza Mae S. Junio
Third of a series
3. Amy Johnson: First Woman to Fly Solo from England to Australia
TODAY, it takes only a few hours nonstop flight from London to Sydney, Australia. But in the 1930’s it took British pilot Amy Johnson 19 perilous days to fly from England to Australia on a small plane, yet she established a world record – being the first woman to accomplish it, solo.
What moved women like Amy to fly 18,000 kilometers despite many dangers that lie ahead? Let us first know who this woman of courage was.
Amy Johnson was born in Hull, England on July 1, 1903. She came from a Danish ancestry. Anders Jorgensen, her grandfather, ran away from home to sail the seven seas. In his first voyage, he boarded a fishing boat to England. When he reached the Yorkshire countryside, Anders admired its beauty and serenity, so he decided to stay here for good. He started a fishing business and adopted Johnson as his family name, an Anglicized version of Jorgensen. His three sons inherited the business and one of them was Amy’s father.
Just like her friends, Amy was fascinated with flying when she was at school. But it was only in 1920 that she had her first flight as a passenger. But she did not really enjoy it and thought she just wasted her money.
After finishing an economics course at the University of Sheffield, her desire to fly returned. While working in London, she joined the London Aeroplane Club. By living in a Spartan-like life, she was able to save money and spend for flying lessons every two weeks, which started in September 1928. In June 1929, she passed the examinations and gained a private pilot’s ‘A’ license. This had moved Amy to make a career in aviation.
After a few months, she was certified as a ground engineer ‘A’ and later ‘C’ licenses and a navigator’s license, the very first for any woman. Her accomplishments were due to her unending thirst to learn everything about an aircraft, the design, construction, engines, and complete maintenance.
Amy dreamed of being the first woman to fly solo to Australia. Later, Lord Wakefield made that dream come true by donating a huge amount of money to buy a second hand de Haviland Gipsy Moth biplane. Wakefield also shouldered the cost of fuel and supplies. Amy’s father gave £350 to complete the purchase price. She named her plane Jason.
The 19-day flight from London to Australia was no picnic. In Baghdad, she encountered a strong sandstorm during landing that almost destroyed her plane. But she landed safely and was able to fly a few hours later. In Bandar Abbas, the landing gear collapsed but it was repaired later. From Karachi, she was forced to land at Jahnsi due to almost empty tanks but she met an accident and the wing was damaged. It was repaired by some caring residents and then she flew to Allahabad then to Calcutta. In Rangoon, Jason nosedived, damaging the propeller and the wing. Help came from the staff of Insein Engineering Institute. Fortunately, Amy had a spare propeller which replaced the damaged one. Then Amy flew to Don Muang (near Bangkok), Singapore, Semarang, and Sourabaya. During the whole flight, she struggled against heavy monsoon rains and strong winds.
Unable to land at Atamboea (in East Timor) due to the elements, Amy landed at Haliloelik, 19 kms. short of her target. After landing at Atamboea, she did a maintenance check and rested, and then flew, crossed the Timor Sea and Port Darwin. In Australia, 200,000 people came to see her. She received an award from His Majesty the King and £10,000 from the Daily Mail.
In 1931, Amy made a successful flight from England to Tokyo accompanied by C.H. Humpreys. In 1932, she established new solo flight from England to Cape Town, South Africa. In 1936, she set a new flight record from England to Cape Town.
In July 1932, she married Scotsman pilot Jim A. Mollison; they had a divorce in 1938. On July 24, 1935, Amy and Jim were both injured when their de Havilland Dragon I Seafarer overturned on landing in Connecticut.
In 1940, she applied at the British Air Transport Auxiliary, she was assigned to ferry aircraft between manufacturers and maintenance units during World War II. On January 3, 1941, she was tasked to deliver a de Havilland Tiger Moth from Hatfield to Prestwick Scotland. Due to poor visibility in a wintry morning, she crashed into the Thames Estuary (a body of water wherein the Thames River meets the North Sea). It appeared that she had faulty instruments. (In 1999, pilot Tom Mitchell claimed that he downed Amy’s plane which he mistook for an enemy plane due to her failure in giving the correct radio code. But this was disputed). HMS Berkely witnessed the crashed and rushed to the site. Wasting no time, Lt. Commander Fletcher dove overboard to save the pilot. After some time, he was pulled from the icy water by a rescue boat, unconscious. He died later, not knowing where Amy or her plane was. (If Mitchell’s claim was true, the crew of HMS Berkely who was on the site, would have corroborated the claim).
Other vessels arrived and joined the search for Amy until darkness, but she was never found. Succeeding search and retrieval attempts also yielded negative results.
Many of Amy’s friends and acquaintances asked, why would the ATA chose a woman like Amy to a very dangerous mission and allow her to fly in zero visibility? At the age of 38, Amy gave the ultimate sacrifice for her country.
Two buildings, a school, and five streets were named after her in England, and two streets in Australia in honor of this heroic English pilot. Also a KLM McDonell Douglas -11 airline was named after her.
Reference: Mondey, David, WOMEN OF THE AIR, Silver Burdett Co., Morristown, N.J., 1982
Third of a series
3. Amy Johnson: First Woman to Fly Solo from England to Australia
TODAY, it takes only a few hours nonstop flight from London to Sydney, Australia. But in the 1930’s it took British pilot Amy Johnson 19 perilous days to fly from England to Australia on a small plane, yet she established a world record – being the first woman to accomplish it, solo.
What moved women like Amy to fly 18,000 kilometers despite many dangers that lie ahead? Let us first know who this woman of courage was.
Amy Johnson was born in Hull, England on July 1, 1903. She came from a Danish ancestry. Anders Jorgensen, her grandfather, ran away from home to sail the seven seas. In his first voyage, he boarded a fishing boat to England. When he reached the Yorkshire countryside, Anders admired its beauty and serenity, so he decided to stay here for good. He started a fishing business and adopted Johnson as his family name, an Anglicized version of Jorgensen. His three sons inherited the business and one of them was Amy’s father.
Just like her friends, Amy was fascinated with flying when she was at school. But it was only in 1920 that she had her first flight as a passenger. But she did not really enjoy it and thought she just wasted her money.
After finishing an economics course at the University of Sheffield, her desire to fly returned. While working in London, she joined the London Aeroplane Club. By living in a Spartan-like life, she was able to save money and spend for flying lessons every two weeks, which started in September 1928. In June 1929, she passed the examinations and gained a private pilot’s ‘A’ license. This had moved Amy to make a career in aviation.
After a few months, she was certified as a ground engineer ‘A’ and later ‘C’ licenses and a navigator’s license, the very first for any woman. Her accomplishments were due to her unending thirst to learn everything about an aircraft, the design, construction, engines, and complete maintenance.
Amy dreamed of being the first woman to fly solo to Australia. Later, Lord Wakefield made that dream come true by donating a huge amount of money to buy a second hand de Haviland Gipsy Moth biplane. Wakefield also shouldered the cost of fuel and supplies. Amy’s father gave £350 to complete the purchase price. She named her plane Jason.
The 19-day flight from London to Australia was no picnic. In Baghdad, she encountered a strong sandstorm during landing that almost destroyed her plane. But she landed safely and was able to fly a few hours later. In Bandar Abbas, the landing gear collapsed but it was repaired later. From Karachi, she was forced to land at Jahnsi due to almost empty tanks but she met an accident and the wing was damaged. It was repaired by some caring residents and then she flew to Allahabad then to Calcutta. In Rangoon, Jason nosedived, damaging the propeller and the wing. Help came from the staff of Insein Engineering Institute. Fortunately, Amy had a spare propeller which replaced the damaged one. Then Amy flew to Don Muang (near Bangkok), Singapore, Semarang, and Sourabaya. During the whole flight, she struggled against heavy monsoon rains and strong winds.
Unable to land at Atamboea (in East Timor) due to the elements, Amy landed at Haliloelik, 19 kms. short of her target. After landing at Atamboea, she did a maintenance check and rested, and then flew, crossed the Timor Sea and Port Darwin. In Australia, 200,000 people came to see her. She received an award from His Majesty the King and £10,000 from the Daily Mail.
In 1931, Amy made a successful flight from England to Tokyo accompanied by C.H. Humpreys. In 1932, she established new solo flight from England to Cape Town, South Africa. In 1936, she set a new flight record from England to Cape Town.
In July 1932, she married Scotsman pilot Jim A. Mollison; they had a divorce in 1938. On July 24, 1935, Amy and Jim were both injured when their de Havilland Dragon I Seafarer overturned on landing in Connecticut.
In 1940, she applied at the British Air Transport Auxiliary, she was assigned to ferry aircraft between manufacturers and maintenance units during World War II. On January 3, 1941, she was tasked to deliver a de Havilland Tiger Moth from Hatfield to Prestwick Scotland. Due to poor visibility in a wintry morning, she crashed into the Thames Estuary (a body of water wherein the Thames River meets the North Sea). It appeared that she had faulty instruments. (In 1999, pilot Tom Mitchell claimed that he downed Amy’s plane which he mistook for an enemy plane due to her failure in giving the correct radio code. But this was disputed). HMS Berkely witnessed the crashed and rushed to the site. Wasting no time, Lt. Commander Fletcher dove overboard to save the pilot. After some time, he was pulled from the icy water by a rescue boat, unconscious. He died later, not knowing where Amy or her plane was. (If Mitchell’s claim was true, the crew of HMS Berkely who was on the site, would have corroborated the claim).
Other vessels arrived and joined the search for Amy until darkness, but she was never found. Succeeding search and retrieval attempts also yielded negative results.
Many of Amy’s friends and acquaintances asked, why would the ATA chose a woman like Amy to a very dangerous mission and allow her to fly in zero visibility? At the age of 38, Amy gave the ultimate sacrifice for her country.
Two buildings, a school, and five streets were named after her in England, and two streets in Australia in honor of this heroic English pilot. Also a KLM McDonell Douglas -11 airline was named after her.
Reference: Mondey, David, WOMEN OF THE AIR, Silver Burdett Co., Morristown, N.J., 1982