Being a woman scientist is a complicated task; even more so for those women who have had to make a place for themselves in the world of aerospace engineering, which has long been known as a male-dominated occupation and hobby.
Our history has great examples of women who, through effort, enthusiasm, constant study and hard work, have left their mark on our past.
Today we reflect on and celebrate the women who made some of the most groundbreaking achievements in the history of aviation.
Jacqueline Cochran
Jacqueline Cochran was an acclaimed advocate for women’s participation in the air force and wrote to Eleanor Roosevelt during World War II, proposing the idea of a female flight division.
In July 1943, Cochran became director of the Women Airforce Service Pilots (WASP) and received the US Distinguished Service Medal for her role after the war.
Sally Ride
Sally was the first American woman to travel into space, joining the crew of the Space Shuttle Challenger in June 1983.
During the NASA mission, she operated the robotic arm and helped deploy two satellites into space. For this, Ride was inducted into the Astronaut Hall of Fame in 2003 and remains the youngest American astronaut to travel in space.
Amy Johnson
Johnson became famous when in 1930 she became the first woman to fly solo from England to Australia, doing so in a de Havilland Gipsy Moth. She was also the first woman in the world to earn a degree in aeronautical engineering.
During World War II, Johnson enlisted in the Air Transport Auxiliary and was killed in 1941 when the plane she was flying crashed into the sea in bad weather. Johnson remains a prominent female figure in the male-dominated world of aviation.
Sheila Scott
She obtained her pilot’s licence in 1960 and became a Cessna and Piper demonstrator to pay for her passion for flying.
Scott broke more than 100 aviation records between 1965 and 1972; from being the first British person to fly over the North Pole in a light aircraft to being the first British pilot to fly solo across the world.
In the PhD in Aerospace Engineering at Universidad Carlos III de Madrid we have women who could become the new great aerospace engineers of the future.
PhD in Aerospace Engineering UC3M 