Amelia Mary Earhart
(July 24, 1897; disappeared July 2, 1937; declared dead
January 5, 1939)

Aviation trailblazer Amelia Earhart became the first woman to
fly solo across the U.S. nonstop on this day in history, Aug. 24,
1932.

Earhart piloted her Lockheed Vega 5B from Los Angeles to
Newark in 19 hours and 5 minutes.  She set an official U.S
record for women’s distance and time.

Amelia Earhart’s Lockheed Vega 5B in the National Air
and Space Museum.

President Reagan with US Attorney General William French Smith making a statement to the press regarding the air
traffic controllers strike from the Rose Garden. White
House Photo/Ronald Reagan Library

On August 5, 1981, President Ronald Reagan began firing
11,359 air-traffic controllers striking in violation of his order
for them to return to work. The executive action, regarded
as extreme by many, significantly slowed air travel for
months.

CAMMILE
BOHANNON

American aviator Wiley Post returned to Floyd Bennett Field in
New York on July 22, 1933, having flown solo around the world
in 7 days, 18 hours, and 49 minutes. He was the first aviator to accomplish the feat.

Post, instantly recognizable by the patch he wore over one eye,
began the journey on July 15, flying nonstop to Berlin. After a
brief rest, he flew on to the Soviet Union, where he made several
stops before returning to North America, with stops in Alaska,
Canada, and finally a triumphant landing at his starting point in
New York.

Wiley Post with his Lockheed Model 5C Vega, NR105W,
at Floyd Bennet Field, Long Island, New York, 15 July
1933.