Amelia Earhart

Born July 24, 1897, Atchison, Kansas, —disappeared July 2, 1937

Amelia Earhart was a “record-breaking female aviator whose international fame improved public acceptance of aviation and paved the way for other women in commercial flight.”

She worked hard throughout her life, and in 1928 was the first female to cross the Atlantic as a passenger. This made her a media sensation and she published two books and continued to pilot planes in record breaking flights in speed and distance. She became the first woman to pilot a plane solo across the Atlantic in 1932. She earned the American Distinguished Flying Cross and the Cross of the French Legion of Honor. She became a symbol for what women could achieve and her accolades created more opportunities for female aviators.