Debbie Gary Callier (born February 24, 1948) is an American

air show An air show (or airshow, air fair, air tattoo) is a public event where aircraft are trade fair, exhibited. They often include aerobatics demonstrations, without which they are called "static air shows" with aircraft parked on the ground. The ...

pilot. She began flying at age nineteen, and was the first woman to fly in a formation aerobatic team. She also wrote the ''Bellanca Pilot Proficiency Training Manual''.

Biography

Callier graduated in 1965 from William McFarland High School in Bordentown Township, New Jersey and attended

George Washington University The George Washington University (GW or GWU) is a Private university, private University charter#Federal, federally-chartered research university in Washington, D.C., United States. Originally named Columbian College, it was chartered in 1821 by ...

before moving with her father to Saint Thomas. Gary first took flying lessons in 1966 in

New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...

. Her first solo flight took place in the

Virgin Islands The Virgin Islands () are an archipelago between the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean and northeastern Caribbean Sea, geographically forming part of the Leeward Islands of the Lesser Antilles in the Caribbean, Caribbean islands or West Indie ...

, where she had moved with her family. Starting in 1968, she began working as a glider instructor and in 1969, met Jim Holland when she flew a glider at the St. Croix airshow. She learned

aerobatics Aerobatics is the practice of flying maneuvers involving aircraft attitudes that are not used in conventional passenger-carrying flights. The term is a portmanteau of "aeroplane" and "acrobatics". Aerobatics are performed in aeroplanes and gl ...

from Holland and joined his airshow. She performed for some time for Holland, then worked for a Canadian aerobatic team. She competed against 40 men for her spot on the aerobatics team. After, she joined the Bede Jet Team. She became the first woman to fly full-time in an aerial formation team. '' The Star Tribune'' called Gary "the world's leading woman show pilot" in 1978. She also appeared in episode 12 of the first season of the TV series The Blue Marble in 1974. She has flown a Bede BD-5J and a Pitts S-1A open cockpit biplane doing her stunts. After 1972, she started working as an instructor at the Flabob Airport. When she was not doing airshows, she worked as an instructor. Later, she worked in Alexandria, Minnesota. In 1978, Gary married Jim Callier, who was the president of the Bellanca Aircraft Corp. In 1994, Gary earned a journalism degree from the

University of Houston The University of Houston (; ) is a Public university, public research university in Houston, Texas, United States. It was established in 1927 as Houston Junior College, a coeducational institution and one of multiple junior colleges formed in ...

. She did an internship at the '' Houston Post'', and wrote for '' Air & Space,'' a magazine published by the

Smithsonian Institution The Smithsonian Institution ( ), or simply the Smithsonian, is a group of museums, Education center, education and Research institute, research centers, created by the Federal government of the United States, U.S. government "for the increase a ...

. She also took time off from air shows to raise her children. Gary started flying airshows again around 1998. She encourages young people, especially girls, to think about going into aviation as a career. In 1979, the Supersisters trading card set was produced and distributed; one of the cards featured Gary's name and picture. A photo-lithograph of the card is owned by the

Metropolitan Museum of Art The Metropolitan Museum of Art, colloquially referred to as the Met, is an Encyclopedic museum, encyclopedic art museum in New York City. By floor area, it is the List of largest museums, third-largest museum in the world and the List of larg ...

References

External links

Official site

Debbie Gary Airshows and her SIAI Marchetti
(2010 video) {{DEFAULTSORT:Callier, Debbie Gary 1948 births Living people Aerobatic pilots American women aviators American glider pilots American aviation writers Bordentown Regional High School alumni George Washington University alumni History of aerobatics University of Houston alumni Place of birth missing (living people) Date of birth missing (living people) People from Bordentown, New Jersey 20th-century American journalists