£ 20.00

Magnificent Women And Flying Machines – The First 200 Years Of British Women In The Skies

AUTHOR – Sally Smith

PUBLISHER – The History Press

FORMAT – Hardback

PAGES – 287

PUBLISHED – 2021

ISBN – 978 0 7509 9746 1

Out of stock

Category: Product ID: 15830

Description

The personal story of those magnificent women in their flying machines; an area of history, aviation and society that has sadly been overlooked. From the 1780s, when exuberant and over-dressed Letitia Sage became the first woman in Britain to fly above the ground, to the 1930s, when the soft courage of charming Amy Johnson enabled her to guide her little wood and fabric bi-plane all the way to Australia, the first 150 years of British women in aviation is filled with fascinating and often astonishing stories.

This book offers a highly readable overview of the contributions made by pioneering British women who achieved firsts in early aviation, from ballooning and parachuting to flying airships, gliders and powered aircraft. The book provides steady insights into the progress of flight but, more importantly, highlights these amazing women who had to fight against the values of the day to fulfil their dreams.

Take Margaret Graham for instance. Bouncing off roof tops, water landings and a husband in prison, nothing was going to stop her from becoming Britain’s first female balloon pilot. Then there is Emily de Voy, who spent her childhood in a workhouse and ran off with her sister’s husband before attaching herself to a cumbersome harness to become Britain’s first female parachutist. Rose Spencer, with her pregnancy elegantly covered by the long Edwardian fashions of the day, hopped into one of the first powered airships to achieve a beautifully controlled flight while Manchester’s jolly Winifred Brown suddenly became a serious pilot after killing a young boy and went on to win a prestigious air race, beating all the top male flyers of the day.

This book is the story of the lives of Britain’s early trail blazing female aviators; inspirational adventure stories that deserve their place in the history books.

Additional information

Weight0.6 kg

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