It was a good, practical thing that dozens of women, both in the United States and other countries, could have done before I did,” she said. “I didn’t think it was such a great thing it was just lots of fun. In an interview before her death in 2014, Mock was asked how she had felt about the achievement, looking back on it 50 years later. Mock’s success came 27 years after Amelia Earhart’s ill-fated attempt to fly around the world in 1937. She was greeted at the Port Columbus Airport by thousands. Throughout her travels, she experienced minor technical difficulties and her plane needed a handful of repairs along the way. Smith began her journey two days before Mock on March 17, 1964.ĭespite her rival’s head start, Jerrie Mock was given the title as the first woman to fly around the world on April 17, 1964. She took off from a field near San Fransisco and planned to follow the same flight path as Amelia Earhart. However, she planned to begin what she called a sightseeing expedition around the world. The National Aeronautic Association did not sanction Smith’s flight. Both began racing to become the first woman to successfully fly around the world. They were unaware of the competition until they were filing their routes with the National Aeronautic Association and learned of the other’s plans. The Ohio native discovered a rival in Joan Merriam Smith. Mock and her family lived in Bexley when she left for her excursion. The pilot also brought along a typewriter so that she could type personal letters and articles for the Columbus Dispatch while she traveled. This included a new engine, radio direction finders, and both long and short-range radios for communication. The Cessna 180 had been given several updates to help prepare the aircraft for the long distance journey. Geraldine “Jerrie” MockWith some help from her husband and his colleagues, Jerrie Mock found herself in the cockpit of The Spirit of Columbus. The mother of three deemed herself “the flying housewife” and worked hard to get 750 hours of flight time under her belt by the time she made her trip in 1964. Her husband, Russell Mock, was a pilot and not only inspired Jerrie to become a pilot herself, he encouraged it. Jerrie Mock was one of the first aeronautical engineering students at the Ohio State University.
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