Amelia Earhart Biography: Facts About The First Woman Pilot

Abhijeet Modi
Oct 30, 2023 By Abhijeet Modi
Originally Published on Jan 19, 2022
This Amelia Earhart biography will tell you more about her flight across the Atlantic.)
Age: 3-18
Read time: 6.5 Min

Amelia Mary Earhart was an American writer as well as an aviation visionary.

Earhart was the first woman to make a solo flight throughout the Atlantic Ocean. She achieved numerous other aviation records as well.

She was an American aviator who was among the first to advertise commercial air travel, began writing best-selling novels concerning her flying life experience, and was instrumental in establishing The Ninety-Nines, a female pilots' organization. Earhart, born and brought up in Atchison, Kansas, and subsequently in Des Moines, Iowa, developed a love for expeditions at a young age. Amelia Earhart attended classes for flying in her twenties.

Earhart is noted in the history books as the first female passenger to fly across the Atlantic in 1928, earning her celebrity status. Earhart was the first woman to fly a nonstop solo transatlantic flight in 1932, flying the plane model Lockheed Vega 5B. She was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross of the United States for her achievement.

After reading about the aviation records and achievements of Amelia Earhart, also check out facts about Walt Disney's biography and biography of Trump here at Kidadl!

Fun Facts About Amelia Earhart

Amelia Earhart created a world record of flying at a record altitude of 18,415 ft (5,612.9 m) in 1931. As a result of her strong similarities to Lindbergh, she was dubbed as 'Lucky Lindy' by the newspapers; some members of the media began to refer to Amelia as 'Lady Lindy', or perhaps the 'Queen of the Air.'

Amelia Earhart became the first woman and first person to fly solo from Hawaii to the United States mainland, flying over the South Pacific Ocean on January 11–12, 1935. Some speculated that it was a promotional stunt for Earhart and Hawaiian sugar plantation marketers, but the journey was difficult.

Earhart and her crew member Fred Noonan vanished over the central Pacific Ocean near Howland Island in 1937 while trying to be the first woman to accomplish a circumnavigational flight of the world in a Purdue-funded Lockheed Model 10-E Electra.

Some references have mentioned Earhart's evident lack of knowledge of her aircraft's navigation system, which had been installed just before the beginning of the flight. Although no transmitter was observed to have been discovered at Lae, motion picture evidence would suggest that a transmitter mounted beneath the fuselage of the fuel-heavy Electra was ripped off during takeoff from Lae's turf runway. Don Dwiggins mentioned in his life story of Paul Mantz, who helped Earhart and Noonan with flight planning, that the pilots had broken off their long-wire antenna due to the inconvenience of needing to stuff it back into the plane after every use.

Throughout Earhart and Noonan's course of action to Howland Island, the Itasca started to receive clear and strong voice transmitted data from Earhart, trying to identify herself as KHAQQ. Still, she had been unable to hear audio data transmission from the cargo vessel. Her plane was never found, though several attempts were made to find the plane's wreckage.

Earhart acquired the Distinguished Flying Cross from Congress, the Cross of Knight of the Legion of Honor from the French Government, and the Gold Medal of the National Geographic Society from President Herbert Hoover for being the first female pilot to lead solo uninterruptedly throughout the Atlantic.

As her celebrity image grew, she made friends with several people in positions of power, most prominently First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt. Lady Roosevelt and Amelia Earhart had many interests and passions in common, particularly those related to women's issues. After attempting to fly with Amelia Earhart, Roosevelt acquired a student license but abandoned her intentions to learn to fly.

Interesting Facts About Amelia Earhart's Achievements

Earhart was able to fly solo for nearly 19-hour across the Pacific Ocean, 600 mi (965.6 km) longer than Charles Lindbergh's renowned Atlantic flight. Ten other pilots had ended up dead attempting to complete the difficult plane journey before her.

Amelia Earhart attended a private elementary school in her hometown and graduated from Hyde Park High School in Chicago in 1915. After high school, she studied medicine at Columbia University.

Earhart became the first person to fly solo from Honolulu, Hawaii, to Oakland, California, on January 11, 1935. Between 1930 and 1935, Earhart placed seven women's aviation speed and altitude records in a wide range of planes, such as the Kinner Airster, Lockheed Vega, and Pitcairn Autogiro.

Earhart began planning a historic flight around the world at the beginning of 1936. Even though others had piloted around the globe, her flight would have been the maximum at 29,000 mi (46,670 km) due to its approximately equatorial pathway. In July 1936, a Lockheed Electra 10E was constructed to her specific requirements at Lockheed Aircraft Company with funding from Purdue, including a systems approach to the fuselage to accommodate many extra fuel tanks.

Aside from her flying accomplishments, Earhart was recognized for empowering women to refuse restrictive social standards and undertake different opportunities, particularly in the field of air transport. Earhart was the first president of the Ninety-Nines. In addition, in 1933, she introduced a functional clothing brand aimed at 'the woman who lives actively.'

Amelia Earhart was an accomplished author besides being a pilot.

Facts About Amelia Earhart's Books

Apart from being an accomplished pilot, Amelia Earhart was also a famous author who authored some interesting books.

Amelia Earhart wrote a total of three books. They are 'Last Flight' written in 1937, 'The Fun of It' written in 1932, and '20 Hours, 40 Min: Our Flight in the Friendship' written in 1928.

Besides being the author of several books, numerous books have also been written on Amelia Earhart. These books tell you more about the life of the famous female pilot and act as a source of motivation for girls all over the world. One of the many famous biographies on Earhart is 'The Sounds of Wings' by Mary S. Lovell.

Facts About Amelia Earhart's Plane

Amelia Earhart encountered Fred Noonan, met him through their shared air transport ties in Los Angeles, and opted for him to be her co-pilot on her world Flight with the Lockheed Electra 10E. She had bought with funding provided by Purdue University.

The very last communication obtained from Earhart suggested that Amelia and Fred Noonan were traveling along an alignment of position that Noonan might have estimated and charted as passing across Howland.

Amelia Earhart is an important part of American history. She is most regarded for setting so many records and being an inspiration to many women of her time.

Amelia Earhart's parents were Samuel Edwin Stanton Earhart and Amelia Amy Earhart. She began flying classes with a woman flight instructor and pilot Neta Snook in January 1921. She was married to George Putnam; she did not have her own children but had two stepchildren.

Earhart started working as a clerk at the Los Angeles Telephone Company and a photographer to help pay for her lessons as she learned how to fly. Subsequently, that year, she bought her first plane, a used Kinner Airster. Amelia Earhart named her first plane 'the Canary' because of its yellow color.

Amelia disappeared on July 2, 1937, along with her navigator Fred Noonan. Earhart's sudden disappearance piqued the public's interest and spawned a slew of theories and research as well as claims. Noticeably, some speculated that she and Noonan must have collided on a nearby island after failing to find Howland, while others speculated that the Japanese had apprehended them. However, no substantial evidence was discovered to support such arguments.

Here at Kidadl, we have carefully created many interesting family-friendly facts for everyone to enjoy! If you liked our suggestions for Amelia Earhart biography: facts about the first woman pilot, then why not take a look at Alex Morgan biography or Abraham Lincoln biography.

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Written by Abhijeet Modi

Master of Computer Science

Abhijeet Modi picture

Abhijeet ModiMaster of Computer Science

An experienced and innovative entrepreneur and creative writer, Abhijeet holds a Bachelor's and Master's degree in Computer Application from Birla Institute of Technology, Jaipur. He co-founded an e-commerce website while developing his skills in content writing, making him an expert in creating blog posts, website content, product descriptions, landing pages, and editing articles. Passionate about pushing his limits, Abhijeet brings both technical expertise and creative flair to his work.

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