Katherine Stinson Otero

From the first time she saw the Wright Flyers airplanes, Katherine Stinson knew she wanted to become a pilot. But she had trouble finding someone to teach her how to fly because everyone told her she was too young and too small. Finally, when she found a pilot willing to train her, she not only excelled as a solo flyer, but she also became the fourth American woman licensed to fly.

Earning the nickname “the Flying Schoolgirl,” Katherine performed at exhibitions in California, sets distance records, flew in Japan, China, and Canada, and later opened a flying school in San Antonio, Texas. Even when the U.S. Army would not allow her to fly in Europe, she used her exhibition skills to raise over two million dollars for the Red Cross. Throughout her life, Katherine Stinson Otero’s high morals and high spirits always prevailed, as she was never one to take no for an answer. Her adventurous spirit lives on in the many schools, airplanes, and monuments named after her and she remains an inspiration to us all.