Doris Estella (Rhoads) Lockness (February 2, 1910 – January 30, 2017) was a pioneering American aviator. Two of her sons, Dave Rhodes and Ron Rhoads were Olympic cyclists.

Biography

Lockness was born in

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...

in 1910 and began flying in 1939 and worked as a liaison engineer at

Douglas Aircraft Company The Douglas Aircraft Company was an American aerospace manufacturer, aerospace and military, defense company based in Southern California. Founded in 1921 by Donald Wills Douglas Sr., it merged with McDonnell Aircraft in 1967 to form McDonnell D ...

. She left in 1943 to join the

Women Airforce Service Pilots The Women Airforce Service Pilots (WASP) (also Women's Army Service Pilots or Women's Auxiliary Service Pilots) was a civilian women pilots' organization, whose members were United States federal civil service employees. Members of WASP became t ...

, she was one of 25,000 women who applied to be Air Force Service pilots and was one of 1,074 accepted. She enlisted in the war effort after her husband at the time received a deferment, because of the couple's four children. After the war she continued in aviation, working as a

flight instructor A flight instructor is a person who teaches others to operate aircraft. Specific privileges granted to holders of a flight instructor qualification vary from country to country, but very generally, a flight instructor serves to enhance or evaluate ...

and performing at air shows. She held multiple flight ratings and certifications, including CFI, sea planes, gliders, balloon and helicopter ratings. Lockness received her helicopter rating on April 20, 1963. She was the 55th woman to receive a helicopter rating, and became the 55th member of the Whirly Girls, an organization for women in helicopter aviation. In 1998, she earned her commercial gyroplane license. She was the second woman to hold a rating for a constant speed prop gyroplane. A regular airshow performer, she was often flying “Swamp Angel”, her Vultee Stinson L-5 with 190 horsepower engine that served in New Guinea in World War II. She bought "Swamp-Angel" as war surplus and kept the plane until she was 90. Her adventures were not limited to the skies. Doris was also an avid

Jaguar The jaguar (''Panthera onca'') is a large felidae, cat species and the only extant taxon, living member of the genus ''Panthera'' that is native to the Americas. With a body length of up to and a weight of up to , it is the biggest cat spe ...

enthusiast and a member of the

Sacramento Sacramento ( or ; ; ) is the capital city of the U.S. state of California and the seat of Sacramento County. Located at the confluence of the Sacramento and American Rivers in Northern California's Sacramento Valley, Sacramento's 2020 p ...

Jaguar Club. At age 87, she was the 100th pilot to fly into the Amelia Earhart Memorial Airport in

Atchison, Kansas Atchison is a city in, and the county seat of, Atchison County, Kansas, United States, along the Missouri River. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population of the city was 10,885. The city is named in honor of US Senator ...

. She flew her last plane at age 89. At her 100th birthday party, she co-piloted a Robinson 44 helicopter for her assembled guests. In 1994, she was nominated for the NAA's Elder Statesman of Aviation Award. In her nomination, Lockness was cited as "the only pilot in the world qualified for membership in all of four exclusive aviation organizations, OX5 Aviation Pioneers; Women's Airforce Service Pilots WWII (WASP); International Women Helicopter Pilots, Inc. (Whirly-Girls); and the United Flying Octogenarians (UFO)." In 1997, a biography of Lockness was included in a “Women and Flight” exhibition at the

National Air and Space Museum The National Air and Space Museum (NASM) of the Smithsonian Institution is a museum in Washington, D.C., in the United States, dedicated to history of aviation, human flight and space exploration. Established in 1946 as the National Air Museum, ...

. Lockness died in 2017 in

Folsom Folsom may refer to: People * Folsom (surname) Places in the United States * Folsom, Perry County, Alabama * Folsom, Randolph County, Alabama * Folsom, California * Folsom, Georgia * Folsom, Louisiana * Folsom, Missouri * Folsom, New Jers ...

, California.

Awards

* 1995 - National Aeronautics Association Elder Statesman of Aviation Award * 1996 - Whirly Girls Livingston Award * 1997 - NAA's

Katharine Wright Katharine Wright Haskell ( Wright; August 19, 1874 – March 3, 1929) was an American teacher, suffragist, and the younger sister of aviation pioneers Wilbur and Orville Wright. She worked closely with her brothers, managing their bicycle shop ...

Memorial Trophy * 2002 -

Women in Aviation International Women in Aviation International (WAI) is an organization dedicated to increasing the number of women involved in all aspects of aviation and aerospace. As an international nonprofit organization, WAI provides networking, education, mentoring, and ...

Pioneer Hall of Fame * 2010 - California National Guard Honorable Order of St. Michael * 2010 - WASP Gold Medal

Ninety-Nines The Ninety-Nines: International Organization of Women Pilots, also known as The 99s, is an international organization that provides networking, mentoring, and flight scholarship opportunities to recreational and professional female pilots. Foun ...

* Whirly Girls * “Hovering” by Henry M. Holden, * “Ladybirds II: The Continuing Story of American Women in Aviation” * “Women and Flight” by Carolyn Russo.

References

1910 births 2017 deaths American women centenarians Women Airforce Service Pilots personnel Place of birth missing Place of death missing American women flight instructors American flight instructors 21st-century American women People from Pennsylvania {{Aviation-bio-stub Women helicopter pilots

Biography

Awards

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References