In 1928, Amelia Earhart became the first woman to fly across the Atlantic Ocean. In 1931, she broke the men's and women's altitude record, flying at 18,415 feet above ground. As the first president of The Ninety-Nines, a group of 99 female pilots, she encouraged more women to enter the field of aviation. The Ninety-Nines still exist and now have over 6,500 members throughout the world.
Pictured is Amelia Earhart sitting in the cockpit of an Electra airplane. Published Dec. 15, 1937, Acme Newspictures (New York, N.Y.); Library of Congress.
