Born in Kew, New South Wales, Australia on 16 October 1915 as Nancy Bird,[1] she was educated at Brighton College, Manly.[4] Bird wanted to fly almost as soon as she could walk. As a teenager during the Depression in Australia, Nancy Bird found herself in the same position as many other children of the time, leaving school at 13 to assist her family.[1] In 1933, at the age of 18, her passion drove her to take flying lessons. Sir Charles Kingsford Smith, who was the first man to fly across the mid-Pacific, had just opened a pilots' school near Sydney, and she was among his first pupils. Most women who learned to fly did so for recreation, but Bird planned to fly for a living.
Aviation career
When she was awarded a commercial pilot's licence at the age of 19, through a legacy of A£200 from a great aunt, plus money loaned from her father (which she paid back), Bird bought her first aircraft, a de Havilland Gipsy Moth. Soon after, Bird and her friend, Peggy McKillop, took off on a barnstorming tour, dropping in on country fairs and giving joyrides to people who had never seen an aircraft before, let alone a female pilot.
While touring, Bird met Reverend Stanley Drummond. He wanted her to help set up a flying medical service in outback New South Wales. In 1935, she was hired to operate the service, named the Royal Far West Children's Health Scheme. Bird's own Gipsy Moth was used as an air ambulance. She bought a better-equipped aircraft and began covering territory, including Queensland,[2] not yet reached by the Royal Flying Doctor Service of Australia. She told others that it was rewarding but lonely work.
In 1936, Nancy Bird entered an air race from Adelaide to Brisbane, and won the Ladies' Trophy. In 1938, she decided to have a long break from flying. A Dutch airline company (KLM) invited her to do some promotional work in Europe, where she stayed for a couple of years. She returned to Australia soon after World War II broke out. She began training women in skills needed to back up the men flying in the Royal Australian Air Force.
In 1950, she founded the Australian Women Pilots' Association (AWPA),[1] where she remained president for five years. Nancy-Bird Walton became Patron of the AWPA in 1983, following the death of Lady Casey, the original Patron. In 1958, she decided to return to flying after a hiatus of over twenty years.
Recognition and honours
Throughout her life, Walton was notable for her support of charities and people in need. As a result, she was invested as an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in 1966. She was appointed an Officer of the Order of Australia (AO) in 1990. She was the inspiration for generations of female pilots. She was never involved in an accident, despite the risks of early aviation.
The Nancy-Bird Walton Memorial trophy, sponsored by the family, is presented by the Australian Women Pilots' Association for the "most noteworthy contribution to aviation by a woman of Australasia".[5]
The first Airbus A380 (VH-OQA) delivered to Australian airline Qantas was named in her honour.[6] Her name on the A380 was originally written "Nancy Bird Walton",[7] but Qantas respected her preference for the hyphenation that her late husband used ("Nancy-Bird"), and the hyphen was added before the aircraft's naming, shortly after she was aboard the ceremonial flight above Sydney.[8] This aircraft was operating flight QF32 when it suffered a serious uncontained engine failure after takeoff from Singapore in 2010; coincidentally, Walton wrote the first officer's reference when he first joined Qantas as a pilot.[9]
One of her last main interviews was for the feature-length documentary film which provided an insight into her life along with seven other Australian female pilots.
She was 24 when she married an Englishman, Charles Walton, and had two children. He preferred to call her "Nancy-Bird" rather than "Nancy", and she became generally known as "Nancy-Bird Walton".
On 10 September 2008, shortly before her death, Walton conducted a 45-minute interview for the one-hour documentary.
On 13 January 2009, Nancy Bird Walton died at the age of 93.
References
^ abcdeA Little Bird who achieved big things. Sydney Morning Herald. Accessed 3 February 2009.
^ ab. The Telegraph. London. 1 February 2009. Archived from the original on 23 April 2011. Retrieved 11 January 2019.
^Francis, Rosemary (1 October 2004). "Australian Women Pilots' Association". The Australian Women's Register. Retrieved 16 May 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
^"Northern Beaches Library Services: The Brighton Chronicle, December 1933, p 8". Retrieved 7 November 2021.
^"AWPA Scholarships & Awards - Egilibility Requirements". Australian Women Pilots` Association. Retrieved 16 May 2021.
^Platt, Craig (16 December 2008). "Qantas receives second A380 superjumbo". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved 13 January 2009.
^Video showing Qantas plane "Nancy-Bird Walton" being painted for the first time on YouTube
^VH-OQA aircraft naming ceremonial flight on YouTube
^"Western Sydney airport named after Australian aviation icon Nancy-Bird Walton". ABC News. 4 March 2019.
External links
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Nancy Bird Walton.
Wikiquote has quotations related to Nancy Bird Walton.
ABC, 2002, Australians, Nancy-Bird Walton
Monash University, 2004, Hargrave : the Pioneers, Celebrating the bicentennial of aviation 1804–2004
Bird, Nancy [1961] Born to Fly Angus and Robertson
Walton, Nancy-Bird [1990] 2002 My God! It's a woman: The inspiring story of one woman's courage and determination to fly HarperCollinsPublishers ISBN0-7322-7370-6
Aviation pioneer Nancy Bird Walton dies Sydney Morning Herald
Aussie female air pioneer Nancy Bird Walton dies News.com.au
nancy, bird, walton, october, 1915, january, 2009, pioneering, australian, aviator, known, angel, outback, founder, patron, australian, women, pilots, association, gipsy, moth, kingsford, smith, flying, school, 1933, bornnancy, bird, 1915, october, 1915kew, so. Nancy Bird Walton AO OBE 16 October 1915 13 January 2009 was a pioneering Australian aviator known as The Angel of the Outback 2 and the founder and patron of the Australian Women Pilots Association 3 Nancy Bird WaltonNancy Bird Walton in a Gipsy Moth at Kingsford Smith Flying School 1933 BornNancy Bird 1915 10 16 16 October 1915Kew New South Wales Australia 1 Died13 January 2009 2009 01 13 aged 93 Sydney New South Wales AustraliaNationalityAustralianKnown forYoungest woman pilot to gain a Commercial Pilot s Licence in the British EmpireSpouseCharles WaltonAwardsOfficer of the Order of Australia 1990 Officer of the Order of the British Empire 1966 Centenary Medal 2001 Aviation careerFirst flight1933Flight license27 September 1933 1 Nancy Bird in London 1939 Nancy Bird Walton right with another pioneering Australian aviator Jean Burns 2006 In the 1930s she became a fully qualified pilot at the age of 19 to become the youngest Australian woman to gain a pilot s licence Contents 1 Early life 2 Aviation career 3 Recognition and honours 4 Personal life 5 References 6 External linksEarly life EditBorn in Kew New South Wales Australia on 16 October 1915 as Nancy Bird 1 she was educated at Brighton College Manly 4 Bird wanted to fly almost as soon as she could walk As a teenager during the Depression in Australia Nancy Bird found herself in the same position as many other children of the time leaving school at 13 to assist her family 1 In 1933 at the age of 18 her passion drove her to take flying lessons Sir Charles Kingsford Smith who was the first man to fly across the mid Pacific had just opened a pilots school near Sydney and she was among his first pupils Most women who learned to fly did so for recreation but Bird planned to fly for a living Aviation career EditWhen she was awarded a commercial pilot s licence at the age of 19 through a legacy of A 200 from a great aunt plus money loaned from her father which she paid back Bird bought her first aircraft a de Havilland Gipsy Moth Soon after Bird and her friend Peggy McKillop took off on a barnstorming tour dropping in on country fairs and giving joyrides to people who had never seen an aircraft before let alone a female pilot While touring Bird met Reverend Stanley Drummond He wanted her to help set up a flying medical service in outback New South Wales In 1935 she was hired to operate the service named the Royal Far West Children s Health Scheme Bird s own Gipsy Moth was used as an air ambulance She bought a better equipped aircraft and began covering territory including Queensland 2 not yet reached by the Royal Flying Doctor Service of Australia She told others that it was rewarding but lonely work In 1936 Nancy Bird entered an air race from Adelaide to Brisbane and won the Ladies Trophy In 1938 she decided to have a long break from flying A Dutch airline company KLM invited her to do some promotional work in Europe where she stayed for a couple of years She returned to Australia soon after World War II broke out She began training women in skills needed to back up the men flying in the Royal Australian Air Force In 1950 she founded the Australian Women Pilots Association AWPA 1 where she remained president for five years Nancy Bird Walton became Patron of the AWPA in 1983 following the death of Lady Casey the original Patron In 1958 she decided to return to flying after a hiatus of over twenty years Recognition and honours EditThroughout her life Walton was notable for her support of charities and people in need As a result she was invested as an Officer of the Order of the British Empire OBE in 1966 She was appointed an Officer of the Order of Australia AO in 1990 She was the inspiration for generations of female pilots She was never involved in an accident despite the risks of early aviation The Nancy Bird Walton Memorial trophy sponsored by the family is presented by the Australian Women Pilots Association for the most noteworthy contribution to aviation by a woman of Australasia 5 The National Trust of Australia declared her an Australian Living Treasure in 1997 and in 2001 she was inducted into the Victorian Honour Roll of Women The first Airbus A380 VH OQA delivered to Australian airline Qantas was named in her honour 6 Her name on the A380 was originally written Nancy Bird Walton 7 but Qantas respected her preference for the hyphenation that her late husband used Nancy Bird and the hyphen was added before the aircraft s naming shortly after she was aboard the ceremonial flight above Sydney 8 This aircraft was operating flight QF32 when it suffered a serious uncontained engine failure after takeoff from Singapore in 2010 coincidentally Walton wrote the first officer s reference when he first joined Qantas as a pilot 9 One of her last main interviews was for the feature length documentary film Flying Sheilas which provided an insight into her life along with seven other Australian female pilots In March 2019 Prime Minister Scott Morrison announced that the new Western Sydney Airport will be named Western Sydney International Nancy Bird Walton Airport 10 Personal life EditShe was 24 when she married an Englishman Charles Walton and had two children He preferred to call her Nancy Bird rather than Nancy and she became generally known as Nancy Bird Walton On 10 September 2008 shortly before her death Walton conducted a 45 minute interview for the one hour documentary On 13 January 2009 Nancy Bird Walton died at the age of 93 References Edit a b c d e A Little Bird who achieved big things Sydney Morning Herald Accessed 3 February 2009 a b Nancy Bird Walton The Telegraph London 1 February 2009 Archived from the original on 23 April 2011 Retrieved 11 January 2019 Francis Rosemary 1 October 2004 Australian Women Pilots Association The Australian Women s Register Retrieved 16 May 2021 a href Template Cite web html title Template Cite web cite web a CS1 maint url status link Northern Beaches Library Services The Brighton Chronicle December 1933 p 8 Retrieved 7 November 2021 AWPA Scholarships amp Awards Egilibility Requirements Australian Women Pilots Association Retrieved 16 May 2021 Platt Craig 16 December 2008 Qantas receives second A380 superjumbo The Sydney Morning Herald Retrieved 13 January 2009 Video showing Qantas plane Nancy Bird Walton being painted for the first time on YouTube VH OQA aircraft naming ceremonial flight on YouTube de Crespigny Richard 2012 QF32 Western Sydney airport named after Australian aviation icon Nancy Bird Walton ABC News 4 March 2019 External links Edit Wikimedia Commons has media related to Nancy Bird Walton Wikiquote has quotations related to Nancy Bird Walton ABC 2002 Australians Nancy Bird Walton Monash University 2004 Hargrave the Pioneers Celebrating the bicentennial of aviation 1804 2004 Bird Nancy 1961 Born to Fly Angus and Robertson Walton Nancy Bird 1990 2002 My God It s a woman The inspiring story of one woman s courage and determination to fly HarperCollinsPublishers ISBN 0 7322 7370 6 Aviation pioneer Nancy Bird Walton dies Sydney Morning Herald Aussie female air pioneer Nancy Bird Walton dies News com au Nancy Bird Walton 1915 2009 photo gallery from State Library of New South WalesPortals Australia Biography Aviation Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Nancy Bird Walton amp oldid 1110917462, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
