Braving the Dangerous Skies

Into the unknown
                 The Lindbergh's pioneering 1931 Asian trip took them to Canada, across to Alaska, then toRussia, Japan and China.
                 Their 1933 European trip took them across Greenland and throughout Europe.
                 Charles was the main pilot, while Anne operated the Morse Code radio.  The radio allowed them to find out weather conditions and to let people know where they were.
                 They were the first to fly to these distant places, so there were no airstrips.  They flew a pontoon plane, or one withlanding gear designed like the bottom of a boat.
                 Fuel and supplies were brought to their expected landing sites ahead of time.  But sometimes they had to spend the night in their plane and eat canned food they'd brought along.
Amelia Earhart
                 Amelia Earhart was the next big star.  She was the first woman to fly alone across the Atlantic Ocean.  She achieved this milestone almost exactlyfive years after Lindbergh made his own record-setting Atlantic journey.
                 She worked to promote flying and also to make it possible for women to have aviation careers.
Forging the way
                 Bessie Coleman was the first African-American to receive a pilot's license, in 1921.  There had been other black pilots before her, but they didn't have licenses.  When flying first became popular, no license was needed.
                 Because she was black and a woman, she couldn't find anybody in America to teach her to fly.  She had to go to France to learn.
                 She dreamed of setting up a flight school for African-Americans.  Unfortunately, she died in a plane crash while performing public flying exhibitions.