Maxine Dunlap – New Pilot!
Captivated by aviation following Lindbergh’s trans-Atlantic flight in 1927, Maxine Dunlap decided to become a pilot. She earned her pilot license, #5894, at Mills Field in San Francisco in 1929. Records note that she became the first woman in San Francisco to achieve this significant accomplishment. She joined the Ninety-Nines, an International Organization of Women Pilots, in 1930. Competing in air meets and races followed. She set the women’s speed record in light planes on a 100km course in 1935 during a Tulsa, Oklahoma meet. Maxine’s ‘family’ airplane was a Stinson Gull Wing. When the engine quit during a flight, she made a forced landing in a rose garden. No damage resulted, but a crowd quickly gathered. Out of the multitude a masculine voice declared, “Now isn’t that just like a woman – landing on a bed of roses.”
Flying Gliders
After accumulating over sixty hours of flying time, Maxine Dunlap added a glider pilot license to her resume. She met the requirements for a Class 3 license on April 18, 1929. These included being airborne for 59 seconds, executing two ‘S’ curves, and making a successful landing on the sand dunes at San Francisco’s Ocean Beach. This exceeded Amelia Earhart’s previous record of 17 seconds which did not qualify her for a license.
Supporter of Women Pilots
As a member of an elite group of women pilots, Maxine knew the importance of supporting her ‘sisters’ as well as promoting aviation. In March 1930, she became president of the Bay Region California Gliding Club, Her enthusiasm for such a group undoubtedly contributed to the formation of the group. Other pioneering glider pilots included Peaches Wallace, Allaire du Pont, Guinevere Kotter, and Ruth Alexander, the first woman glider instructor.