1922: A Record-Breaking English Aviator is Born

April 27, 1922

Sheila Scott, who would break more than 100 aviation records, was born in the cathedral city of Worcester in central England. Prior to her pursuit of flying, she worked in such varied fields as nursing and acting.

Scott learned how to fly in 1958. After nine months of training, she began to pilot planes solo. The first aircraft that Scott owned was a Thruxton Jackaroo, a four-seat cabin biplane that had been converted from a de Havilland Tiger Moth.

In 1965, the Piper Aircraft Company loaned its Piper Comanche 400 European demonstrator N8515P monoplane to Scott. She used this aircraft to establish numerous European speed records. These included flights from London to Dublin, Belfast, Brussels, and the Hague. She obtained another Piper Comanche monoplane in 1966 and used this one to make her first solo flight across the globe.

This flight began at London Airport (now called Heathrow Airport) on May 18, 1966, and ended there the following month on June 20. During this 34-day flight, Scott covered about 31,000 miles (50,000 kilometers) in 189 flying hours. Her record-setting journey marked the first solo around-the-world flight by a British subject; the longest-distance solo airborne trip; and only the third flight across the globe by a woman.  

In 1971, Scott used a Piper PA-23 Aztec light aircraft for what was her third solo flight around the world. This flight stood out for its unusual route. Scott began the trip in Kenya’s capital city of Nairobi, then flew north to London. From there, she traveled into the Arctic region and became the first person to cross over the North Pole in a light aircraft. Scott then flew via both Anchorage and San Francisco to Hawaii before making her way to the Australian city of Darwin. It was from Darwin that she flew back to London to complete her 55-day journey. This flight also had scientific significance; Scott carried NASA equipment as part of a worldwide test of satellite communications technology.

When she was not flying, Scott found time to get involved in aviation-oriented organizations for females. She helped establish the British branch of the Ninety-Nines, a longstanding association for licensed women pilots, and served as this branch’s first governor. Scott also belonged to the Whirly-Girls, an organization for women helicopter pilots; and the International Association of Licensed Women Pilots.

Scott also became a celebrity of sorts on American TV game shows. She was a contestant on What’s My Line in 1966 and appeared as herself on To Tell the Truth the following year. Scott took time as well to write two books: I Must Fly in 1968 and On Top of the World in 1974. I

In addition, Scott was the recipient of several honors. These included being appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire in 1968; awarded the Harmon International Aviation Trophy (aviatrix category) in 1966 and 1970; and presented with the Britannia Trophy of the United Kingdom’s Royal Aero Club in 1968. Scott died in London on October 20, 1988, at the age of 66.

Photo Credit: Public Domain

For more information on Sheila Scott, please check out https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sheila_Scott