Viewing page 15 of 140

This transcription has been completed. Contact us with corrections.

The woman having the distinction of being the first woman passenger on a regularly schedule airline was Mrs. L. A. Whitney, wife of the Secretary of Commerce of St. Petersburg, Florida. The St. Petersburg-Tampa Airboat Line, the world's first schedule airline, went into operation on January 1, 1914, with a Benoist flying boat piloted by Tony Jannus.

Mrs. Whitney flew from St. Petersburg to Tampa on January 8, and her flight was not without incident. Jannus was forced to land the aircraft on Tampa Bay because of engine trouble, but he soon had it repaired and successfully completed the flight.

Women of those early days also backed the future of aviation with financial support and genuine enthusiastic encouragement. Katherine Wright, sister of Wilbur and Orville Wright, took an active part in helping her brothers. When money for their experiments was running low, Wilbur and Orville could count on Katherine to contribute a large part of her schoolteacher's salary to their needs. She also worked many nights sewing silk, cotton, and canvas wing coverings for the model gliders they were testing.

Katherine went to Europe with her brothers and often flew as a passenger when they were demonstrating their aircraft in England, France, and Italy.