Avionics News April 2012 - 35

After completing his successful solo flight from New York to Paris in 1927, Charles Lindbergh came to Armstrong Field to lobby for a municipal airport. When the new Memphis Municipal Airport was established in 1929, Vernon moved his operation there. Phoebe, by then a licensed transport pilot and aircraft mechanic, the first woman to earn those licenses, took a trip to Moline, Ill., hoping to secure the franchise to sell the Monocoupe, a 55-horsepower, singlewing, closed-cabin two-seater plane, in Memphis. She got more than she bargained, and Phoebe became a consultant and distributor for the Mono Aircraft Corp. and its chief publicist. In 1928, she was the only woman competitor in the Ford National Reliability Air Tour. The 6,304 mile tour started in Dearborn with 24 planes and went west to California, Oregon and Washington, then made a great circle to the east across the southern U.S. The 30-day tour stopped in 32 cities in 13 states and traveled through regions rough enough to test the stability of any plane and the skill of any pilot. Phoebe traveled alone, taking neither navigator nor mechanic. She told reporters: “If I take a mechanic, they’ll say he flew the ship over the bad spots. No, I’ll be my own mechanic, and I’ll fly my plane myself.” During the race, she became the first woman to take a light plane across the Rocky Mountains and desert Southwest. She finished last, but she finished. Twenty women competed in the first National Women’s Air Derby in 1929. The race began in Santa Monica, Calif., Aug. 18 and ended in Cleveland, Ohio, eight days later. Each pilot was required to fly alone, carry a gallon of water and a three-day supply of food. Phoebe was the best prepared pilot for the rigors of the race because of her experience in the Ford Air Tour. She knew exactly what she and her plane were capable of doing. As a result, although a number of women had serious problems, including fires and various crack-ups, and one woman crashed and was killed during the race, Phoebe had a relatively uneventful journey. She led every leg and won the race in the CW class (510 cubic inch displacement or less).

Phoebe won several more big cross country races during the next couple of years, some with significant prize money. Then, in 1931, she won the big one. She was the overall winner in the 1931 Transcontinental Handicap Air Derby, another race from Santa Monica to Cleveland. She bested 55 other entrants, including 36 male pilots. It was the first time in the National Air Races men and women competed against each other. The sweepstakes prize of $3,000 (approximately $35,000 in today’s money) and a brand new Cord automobile was awarded to the pilot (regardless of sex) with the most points overall (based on skill and efficiency). Phoebe’s exploits were on the nation’s front pages, and in 1932, Eleanor Roosevelt sent her a telegram asking her to fly around the U.S. campaigning for Eleanor’s husband, Franklin Delano Roosevelt, in his bid for the presidency. She covered more than 20,000 miles, campaigned in 16 dif-

ferent states and spoke to countless potential voters. After the inauguration, Phoebe received a presidential appointment to the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics. The NACA was the predecessor of the National Space and Aeronautics Administration. Phoebe Omlie was the first woman in the federal government to hold an official post in connection with aviation. She led a host of federal efforts on behalf of aviation, particularly for private pilots. One example was her air-marking program, which she conceived and initiated in 1935. Those were the days when pilots navigated by inching their way down a map with their thumb, following a highway, river or railroad, or buzzing the local depot to verify their location. The program called for 12foot black and orange letters to be painted on the roofs of barns, factories, warehouses
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Avionics News April 2012

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Avionics News April 2012

Point of Communication
AEA Now
The View from Washington
International News and Regulatory Updates
Datalink Weather
Member Profile
Where Are They Now?
Before & After
Phoebe Fairgrave Omlie
A Conversation With...
Aircraft Electrical Wiring
Meet the AEA Staff
Member Profile
The AEA Ambassador Program
Business Basics
Pro-to-col
Industry Profile
Theory & Practice
What's New
Marketplace Classifieds
Avionics News April 2012 - Cover1
Avionics News April 2012 - Cover2
Avionics News April 2012 - 1
Avionics News April 2012 - 2
Avionics News April 2012 - 3
Avionics News April 2012 - Point of Communication
Avionics News April 2012 - 5
Avionics News April 2012 - AEA Now
Avionics News April 2012 - 7
Avionics News April 2012 - 8
Avionics News April 2012 - 9
Avionics News April 2012 - 10
Avionics News April 2012 - 11
Avionics News April 2012 - 12
Avionics News April 2012 - 13
Avionics News April 2012 - 14
Avionics News April 2012 - 15
Avionics News April 2012 - The View from Washington
Avionics News April 2012 - 17
Avionics News April 2012 - International News and Regulatory Updates
Avionics News April 2012 - 19
Avionics News April 2012 - Datalink Weather
Avionics News April 2012 - 21
Avionics News April 2012 - 22
Avionics News April 2012 - 23
Avionics News April 2012 - Member Profile
Avionics News April 2012 - 25
Avionics News April 2012 - 26
Avionics News April 2012 - 27
Avionics News April 2012 - Where Are They Now?
Avionics News April 2012 - 29
Avionics News April 2012 - 30
Avionics News April 2012 - 31
Avionics News April 2012 - 32
Avionics News April 2012 - Before & After
Avionics News April 2012 - Phoebe Fairgrave Omlie
Avionics News April 2012 - 35
Avionics News April 2012 - 36
Avionics News April 2012 - 37
Avionics News April 2012 - A Conversation With...
Avionics News April 2012 - 39
Avionics News April 2012 - Aircraft Electrical Wiring
Avionics News April 2012 - 41
Avionics News April 2012 - 42
Avionics News April 2012 - 43
Avionics News April 2012 - 44
Avionics News April 2012 - 45
Avionics News April 2012 - Meet the AEA Staff
Avionics News April 2012 - 47
Avionics News April 2012 - 48
Avionics News April 2012 - 49
Avionics News April 2012 - Member Profile
Avionics News April 2012 - 51
Avionics News April 2012 - 52
Avionics News April 2012 - 53
Avionics News April 2012 - The AEA Ambassador Program
Avionics News April 2012 - 55
Avionics News April 2012 - 56
Avionics News April 2012 - 57
Avionics News April 2012 - 58
Avionics News April 2012 - 59
Avionics News April 2012 - Business Basics
Avionics News April 2012 - 61
Avionics News April 2012 - 62
Avionics News April 2012 - 63
Avionics News April 2012 - 64
Avionics News April 2012 - 65
Avionics News April 2012 - Pro-to-col
Avionics News April 2012 - 67
Avionics News April 2012 - 68
Avionics News April 2012 - 69
Avionics News April 2012 - Industry Profile
Avionics News April 2012 - 71
Avionics News April 2012 - 72
Avionics News April 2012 - 73
Avionics News April 2012 - Theory & Practice
Avionics News April 2012 - 75
Avionics News April 2012 - 76
Avionics News April 2012 - 77
Avionics News April 2012 - 78
Avionics News April 2012 - 79
Avionics News April 2012 - What's New
Avionics News April 2012 - 81
Avionics News April 2012 - 82
Avionics News April 2012 - 83
Avionics News April 2012 - 84
Avionics News April 2012 - 85
Avionics News April 2012 - Marketplace Classifieds
Avionics News April 2012 - 87
Avionics News April 2012 - 88
Avionics News April 2012 - Cover3
Avionics News April 2012 - Cover4
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