Fran Bera

Fran Bera (December 7, 1924 in Grand Rapids, Michigan[1] – February 10, 2018)[2], was an American aviatrix and record setting pilot. She is the first woman to fly a helicopter with no tail rotor.[3]

In 1924, she was born Frances Sebastian to Hungarian immigrant farmers in Mulliken, Michigan, the youngest of eight children.[4] She graduated from high school in Lake Odessa, Michigan, but was then rejected from the Women Airforce Service Pilots due to her height.[4]

Fran was a CFII for over 50 years and administered over 3,000 check ride exams for new pilots and advanced rated pilots. She primarily flew fixed wing and helicopters through much of her life, and later flew her pink and white (with “Kick Ass” printed under the tail section) Piper Comanche, PA 24 – 260, single engine, for the remainder of her life. She stopped logging her flight hours after 25,000.

Fran held many air racing records, and a record for the highest altitude in a normally aspirated aircraft (40,000+ feet in a Piper Aztec). Her list of accomplishments is numerous. Some of the awards she received include The Elder Statesmen Award for Aviation, presented to her in Washington, D.C. by former Senator Bob Dole, The Katharine Wright Award for over 50 years in aviation with no aviation accidents or incidents presented by the F.A.A., Women In Aviation (WIA) award for outstanding female aviator, and the San Diego Air & Space Museum Hall of Fame (2007), just to name a few.

In 2007, Bera was inducted into the International Air & Space Hall of Fame at the San Diego Air & Space Museum.[5]

References

  1. ↑ Welch 1998, p. 18.
  2. ↑ "SD99s History". San Diego Ninety-Nines. Archived from the original on 3 March 2018. Retrieved 3 March 2018.
  3. ↑ Rowley, Betty (February 1999). "99 Fran Bera has done it all and she just keeps on going and going and going". 99 NEWS MAGAZINE. Retrieved 7 October 2016.
  4. 1 2 Slotnik, Daniel E. (12 April 2018). "Fran Bera, Competitive, Record-Breaking Aviator, Is Dead at 93". The New York Times. p. A28. Retrieved 16 April 2018.
  5. ↑ Sprekelmeyer, Linda, editor. These We Honor: The International Aerospace Hall of Fame. Donning Co. Publishers, 2006. ISBN 978-1-57864-397-4.

Bibliography

  • Welch, Rosanne (1998). Encyclopedia of Women in Aviation and Space. ABC-CLIO. ISBN 978-0-87436-958-8.


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