Brown, James Hurricane Girl

The Life and Career of Pioneer Airwoman, Winifred Crossley

Winifred Crossleys life changed forever after she took a pleasure flight at an air show in 1933. She decided to learn to fly, and upon obtaining her pilots license, she became passionately determined to master the challenging art of aerobatics. In the summer of 1936, she was hired as the first professional female aerobatic pilot, performing twice daily in a Tiger Moth with the last great flying circus to tour the United Kingdom and Ireland. Over the next three years, she flew vintage Avro 504 biplanes, towing gliders aloft and hauling advertising banners. In January 1940, she was one of the celebrated "First Eight"the eight female pilots selected for the women's section of the Air Transport Auxiliary (ATA) to ferry aircraft for the RAF and the Royal Navy. In July 1941, Winnie Crossley became the first woman ever to fly an RAF frontline fighter aircraft: a Hawker Hurricane. Following this successful flight, ATA women were eventually permitted to fly almost every type of aircraft used by the British armed forces during the war. Winnie herself flew dozens of different models, ranging from the Spitfire to the Lancaster, the Mustang to the Liberator, and the Mosquito to the Wellington. She was one of only eleven women qualified to fly heavy four-engine bombers, and one of just three of the original eight pilots to serve from the first day to the last of the ATA women's section's six-year existence. A true aviation pioneer, she has largely been forgotten today. This is her story.