US Airways News
celebrates Women in Aviation Month with a look at
pioneer Harriet Quimby as portrayed by Philadelphia A330
international pilot Connie Tobias.
By Pat Crigler
With a smile and a wave Connie is ready
to fly
Connie Tobias carefully stepped into the purple satin
flying suit, pulled it up and slid her arms into its
long sleeves. With a little help, she buttoned the dozen
satin-covered buttons down her back and laced up the
knee boots that met the bottom of the bloomer-style
suit. Next, she fastened a silver necklace - a
good luck charm - around her neck. Connie placed the
satin hood over her head, buttoned it down and turned it
back just a bit so that very little of her hair showed.
Then, she looped a long champagne- colored scarf around
her neck and over her shoulder. Finishing off her
costume, she donned French goggles, worn over the top of
her hood. Connie came out of the hangar and positioned
herself in front of the shiny wooden propeller of the aeroplane. She stood just so, turned her head and smiled
a shy smile, as the camera rolled.
It is no longer the year 2001 -the year is now 1911.
The woman in the purple satin flying suit is not Connie
Tobias, a US Airways A330
international first officer, but Harriet Quimby,
celebrated American aviatrix. And she's ready to show
her stuff.
Harriet put her boot into the foothold on the side of
the aeroplane. Careful to be very ladylike, she
stepped into the back seat of the French-designed Bleriot, then into the cockpit containing only two
gauges - one measuring oil pressure, the other RPMS. The
1909 aeroplane is made of long slender pieces of wood
and yards of wire with fabric around the cockpit, wings,
tail and rudder. The wings have no ailerons for lateral
control; they simply warp. Two men hold the tail as
Harriet runs the engine up. There are no brakes. She
brings the engine back down and gives a sign to the men
release the tail.
The Bleriot's motor raced as it began its take off
rolling down the grass strip. Harriet pulled back on the
s tick and gracefully lifted the craft into the air -
10, 20, 30 feet. The aeroplane flies straight and smooth
and comes down on its bicycle-like tires with a small
bump at the end of the strip. The people watching
cheered. The videographer shouted, "Do it again."
How did Harriet Quimby become Connie Tobias' alter ego?
Let Connie explain. "Over the years, people have
told me I look a lot like Harriet," said Connie. They
are shockingly similar with dark brown hair, slender
figures, expressive eyes and shy smiles. "As I
began to research Harriet,' said Connie, "I found we
shared other attributes. We were both born into modest,
hardworking families and grew up competitive and goal
oriented. We share a passion for aviation. And neither
one of us ever thought for a minute we couldn't do
something because we were women."
In her 20s, Harriet became a well- known writer for
Leslie's (forerunner of Life Magazine). She purchased a
car and drove it when women didn't and even wrote
articles for women on how to repair their automobiles.
She rode in a race car, wrote plays, and traveled. By
age 36, she lived independently in New York where she
watched an air race around the Statute of Liberty.
That's where she fell in love with flying.
Harriet attended an aviation school and earned her
pilot's license after five weeks and a test that
included figure eights, landing and takeoff skills. She
was the first woman in the U.S. to earn a pilot's
license, license no. 37. In September of 1911, Harriet,
in her purple satin flying costume, flew the first night
flight recorded by a woman. And on April 16, 1912, in
the cockpit of a Bleriot, she became the first woman to
fly across the English Channel. Harriet's record flight
got little news coverage because the Titanic hit an
iceberg and sunk the night before her flight.
More than 60 years later, Connie was halfway across the
country on a bike tour she had organized, when she
stopped to watch a jet plane take off. "That's when I
decided to go home, sell everything and become a pilot"
she said. She had already tried climbing mountains,
riding horses and motorcycles and rafting the fastest
navigable waters in the world. Connie put herself
through college in her mid-20s with scholarships, grants
and loans. She graduated summa cum laude with two
aviation degrees and an academic Masters in Engineering
from Russ College of Engineering and Technology at Ohio
University.
Connie bought her flight time by instructing, flying
fire patrol,
charters and regionals. In 1984, she was hired by
Piedmont Airlines, now US Airways.
Both Harriet and Connie possessed the important
components of success - dreams, desire, daring,
dedication, discipline and determination.
