On this day in 1912, American aviator Harriet Quimby became the first woman to fly solo across the English Channel. It took her just under an hour.
Harriet Quimby Becomes the First Woman to Fly Solo Across the English Channel
On April 16, 1912, history took flight as Harriet Quimby, an American aviator, accomplished a remarkable feat: she became the first woman to fly solo across the English Channel. Quimby’s daring journey not only marked a personal triumph but also a significant milestone in aviation history, solidifying her status as a pioneering figure in the male-dominated world of flight.
Born in Arcadia Township, Michigan in 1875, Quimby was a trailblazer from the start. In the early 1900s, her family moved to California where she began her career as a journalist, writing for publications throughout the United States before discovering her passion for aviation. In 1911, she earned her pilot’s license, becoming the first licensed female pilot in the United States, and after earning her Federation Aeronautique Internationale, Quimby joined an exhibition flight team, the Moisant Internal Aviators.
She traveled with pilot John Moisant and his team to Mexico, where she became the first woman to fly across Mexico City. The following year would bring the moment where Quimby further made history when she suited up to make the flight from Dover, England, to Calais, France. Quimby made the flight on April 16, 1912, in just under an hour, landing on a beach about 25 miles outside of Calais, solidifying her place as the first woman to pilot an aircraft across this route.