Micky Axton (January 9, 1919 – February 6, 2010) was an American

aviator An aircraft pilot or aviator is a person who controls the flight of an aircraft by operating its directional flight controls. Some other aircrew members, such as navigators or flight engineers, are also considered aviators because they a ...

who was a test pilot during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. Axton was "one of the first three

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 ...

to be trained as a test pilot" and was the first woman to fly a

B-29 The Boeing B-29 Superfortress is a retired American four-engined Propeller (aeronautics), propeller-driven heavy bomber, designed by Boeing and flown primarily by the United States during World War II and the Korean War. Named in allusion to ...

Early life

Mildred Darlene Tuttle was born in

Coffeyville, Kansas Coffeyville is a city in southeastern Montgomery County, Kansas, United States, located along the Verdigris River in the state's southeastern region. As of the 2020 census, the population of the city was 8,826. Coffeyville is the most pop ...

in 1919 to Beatrice Fletcher Tuttle and Ralph Tuttle.

Interest in aviation

Her first

airplane An airplane (American English), or aeroplane (Commonwealth English), informally plane, is a fixed-wing aircraft that is propelled forward by thrust from a jet engine, Propeller (aircraft), propeller, or rocket engine. Airplanes come in a vari ...

ride, when she was a child, was in a

Curtiss Jenny The Curtiss JN "Jenny" is a series of biplanes built by the Glenn Curtiss Aeroplane Company of Hammondsport, New York, later the Curtiss Aeroplane and Motor Company. Although the Curtiss JN series was originally produced as a training aircraft ...

owned by a neighbor who was part of the Inman Brothers

Barnstorming Barnstorming was a form of entertainment in which stunt pilots performed tricks individually or in groups that were called flying circuses. Devised to "impress people with the skill of pilots and the sturdiness of planes," it became popular in t ...

Flying Circus. Tuttle graduated from Field Kindley High School in 1936, then enrolled in Coffeyville Community College and studied math and chemistry until 1938 when she transferred to

Kansas State University Kansas State University (KSU, Kansas State, or K-State) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university with its main campus in Manhattan, Kansas, United States. It was opened as the state's land-grant coll ...

. She graduated in 1940 with a teaching certificate and taught chemistry at Coffeyville Community College. She obtained her pilot's license in 1940 and attended the Civilian Pilot Training program at Coffeyville Community College in

Kansas Kansas ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the west. Kansas is named a ...

as the only woman in the class.

Family influence

Her great-grandmother was her first passenger after she earned her pilots license. Her brother, Ralph "Tut" Tuttle, was a World War II fighter pilot who flew an estimated 250 missions that earned him two Distinguished Flying Crosses and a

Silver Star The Silver Star Medal (SSM) is the United States Armed Forces' third-highest military decoration for valor in combat. The Silver Star Medal is awarded primarily to members of the United States Armed Forces for gallantry in action against a ...

Marriage

Mildred Tuttle married David "Wayne" Axton on June 1, 1941, the couple settled in Wichita.

Women Airforce Service Pilots

In 1943, Axton joined Women Airforce Service Pilots (WASP) 43-W-7 training class. After graduation she was assigned to Pecos Army Airfield Base in

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

Boeing aircraft flight test engineer

Axton left the WASP program in April 1944 because her mother had taken ill. She applied for a job at the

Boeing The Boeing Company, or simply Boeing (), is an American multinational corporation that designs, manufactures, and sells airplanes, rotorcraft, rockets, satellites, and missiles worldwide. The company also provides leasing and product support s ...

aircraft plant in

Wichita, Kansas Wichita ( ) is the List of cities in Kansas, most populous city in the U.S. state of Kansas and the county seat of Sedgwick County, Kansas, Sedgwick County. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population of the city was 397, ...

, and was hired to work as a flight test engineer. In May 1944 Axton made an historic flight when she was the first woman to fly a Boeing B-29 Superfortress, a broad-shouldered, four-engine propeller-powered heavy bomber. The B-29 was one of the largest aircraft of its time. Axton recounts the flight, saying that the chief flight engineer "had me crawl through the tunnel and come up and I got to fly the B-29 for about 20, 25 minutes."

Teaching career

Axton taught at East High School in Wichita, Kansas from 1958 to 1969.

Later life and death

Axton was an active member of the

Commemorative Air Force The Commemorative Air Force (CAF), formerly known as the Confederate Air Force, is an American non-profit organization based in Dallas, Texas, that preserves and shows historical aircraft at Air show, airshows, primarily in the U.S. and Canada. ...

for forty years. Her husband died in 1998. She died in 2010, aged 91, in

Eden Prairie, Minnesota Eden Prairie is a city in Hennepin County, Minnesota, United States. It had a population of 64,198 at the 2020 census, making it the 16th-largest city in Minnesota. The city is adjacent to the north bank of the Minnesota River, upstream fro ...

, following a brief illness.

Recognition and legacy

The Commemorative Air Force Jayhawk Wing in Wichita restored a

Fairchild PT-19 The Fairchild PT-19 (company designation Fairchild M62) is an American monoplane primary trainer aircraft that served with the United States Army Air Forces, Royal Air Force, RAF and Royal Canadian Air Force, RCAF during World War II. Design ...

and renamed it "Miss Micky" to honor Axton. At a ceremony on

Victory in Europe Day Victory in Europe Day is the day celebrating the formal acceptance by the Allies of World War II of Germany's unconditional surrender of its armed forces on Tuesday, 8 May 1945; it marked the official surrender of all German military operations ...

in 2009 the state of

Minnesota Minnesota ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Upper Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Ontario to the north and east and by the U.S. states of Wisconsin to the east, Iowa to the so ...

belatedly recognized the women in their state that served in World War II. In July 2009

United States President The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed For ...

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II (born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who was the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the first African American president in American history. O ...

signed a bill bestowing the

Congressional Gold Medal The Congressional Gold Medal is the oldest and highest civilian award in the United States, alongside the Presidential Medal of Freedom. It is bestowed by vote of the United States Congress, signed into law by the president. The Gold Medal exp ...

to members of the Women Airforce Service Pilots for the service they gave to their country during World War II. Axton was to receive the Congressional Gold Medal on March 10, 2010.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Axton, Micky Women Airforce Service Pilots personnel Aviators from Kansas Kansas State University alumni People from Coffeyville, Kansas 1919 births 2010 deaths Coffeyville Community College alumni 21st-century American women