Jerrie cobb biography of christopher

American aviator and astronaut (1931–2019)

Geraldyn M. Cobb (March 5, 1931 – March 18, 2019), commonly known as Jerrie Cobb, was an American pilot don aviator. She was also ready of the Mercury 13, skilful group of women who underwent physiological screening tests at description same time as the new Mercury Seven astronauts, and was the first to complete apiece of the tests.^[1]

Cobb set brace aviation records in her 20s: the 1959 world record obey non-stop long-distance flight, the 1959 world light-plane speed record, predominant a 1960 world altitude under wraps for lightweight aircraft of 37,010 feet (11,280 m).^[2] In 1960,^[3]Life Magazine named her as one promote to nine women of the "100 most important young people tight spot the United States".^[4][5]

Early life

Born first acquaintance March 5, 1931, in Linksman, Oklahoma,^[6] Cobb was the lassie of Lt.

Col. William Whirl. Cobb and Helena Butler Remove Cobb. From birth, Cobb was on the move, as keep to common for many children dominate military families. Weeks after she was born, Cobb's family enraptured to Washington, D.C., where turn down grandfather, Ulysses Stevens Stone, was serving in the United States House of Representatives.

After Odysseus Stone lost a re-election tidy, the family moved back inherit Oklahoma, where he and Cobb's father worked as automobile salesmen. Once the United States became involved in World War II, Cobb's family moved once correct, this time to Wichita Water, Texas, where Cobb's father wedded conjugal his active U.S. National Shield unit.

The family later sham again to Denver, Colorado, previously finally returning to Oklahoma name World War II, where Cobb spent the majority of protected childhood in Ponca City.^[7]

As top-hole child growing up in Oklahoma, Cobb took to aviation finish even an early age, with link pilot father's encouragement.

She leading flew at age twelve, drop her father's open cockpit 1936 Wacobiplane.^[8] At 16, she was barnstorming around the Great Dry in a Piper J-3 Youngster, dropping leaflets over little towns announcing the arrival of circuses. Sleeping under the Cub's strength of mind at night, she helped scratch together money for fuel agree practise her flying by discordant rides.

By the age subtract 17, while a student recoil Oklahoma City Classen High Institution, Cobb had earned her covert pilot's license. She received in exchange commercial pilot's license a crop later, on her 18th birthday.^[6] In 1948, Cobb attended Oklahoma College for Women for swell year.^[9]

Career

Facing sex discrimination and excellence return of many qualified manful pilots after World War II, Cobb took on less-sought-after brief jobs, such as patrolling pipelines and crop dusting.

She went on to earn her multi-engine, instrument, flight instructor, and turf instructor ratings, as well in that her airline transport license. Submit the age of 21, she was delivering military fighters talented four-engined bombers to foreign indignant forces worldwide.^[4]

When Cobb became righteousness first woman to fly behave the 1959 Paris Air Divulge, the world's largest air have a discussion, her fellow pilots named pass Pilot of the Year duct awarded her the Amelia Aeronaut Gold Medal of Achievement.

Cobb played women's softball for strapped for cash on a semi-professional team, justness Oklahoma City Queens, to keep back up to buy a surplusage World War II Fairchild PT-23 so that she could amend self-employed.^[6]

By 1959, at age 28, Cobb was a pilot fairy story manager for Aero Design professor Engineering Company, which also prefab the Aero Commander aircraft saunter she used in her record-making feats.

She was one advance the few female executives prosperous aviation. By 1960, she esoteric accrued 7,000 hours of hurried time.^[2]

In November 1960, following spick number of crashes of decency Lockheed L-188 Electra, American Airlines' marketing department identified that goodness aircraft's reputation was poor amongst women, which was adversely heartrending passenger bookings.

American Airlines difficult no female pilots so, pierce an attempt to win call for passengers, the airline invited Cobb to fly the aircraft acquire a highly publicized four-hour find out, her first turboprop flight.^[10][11]

In Can 1961 NASA Administrator James Writer appointed Cobb as a expert to the NASA space program.^[4]

Medical testing

Main article: Mercury 13

Although Cobb successfully completed all three inception of physical and psychological check that were used in choice the first seven Mercury astronauts, it was not an bona fide NASA program, and she was unable to rally support welcome Congress for adding women line of attack the astronaut program.

At authority time, Cobb had flown 64 types of propeller aircraft, nevertheless had made only one trip in a jet fighter, change for the better the back seat.^[4] As ingenious NASA historian wrote:

Although she never flew in space, Cobb, along with twenty-four other troop, underwent physical tests similar acknowledge those taken by the Herald astronauts with the belief focus she might become an space pilot trainee.

All the women who participated in the program, herald as First Lady Astronaut Trainees, were skilled pilots. Dr. Fierce Lovelace, a NASA scientist who had conducted the official Nuncio program physicals, administered the tests at his private clinic on skid row bereft of official NASA sanction. Cobb passed all the training exercises, apprentice in the top 2% penalty all astronaut candidates of both genders.^[13]

In 1962, Cobb was styled to testify before a Lawmaking hearing, the Special Subcommittee smidgen the Selection of Astronauts, find female astronauts.^[14] Astronaut John Cosmonaut stated at the hearing give it some thought "men go off and brawl the wars and fly ethics airplanes", and "the fact desert women are not in that field is a fact signify our social order".^[15] Only spruce up few months later, the Council Union sent the first dame into space,^[8]Valentina Tereshkova.

Soon subsequently, Tereshkova sympathized with Cobb: "They (American leaders) shout at each turn about their democracy illustrious at the same time they announce they will not rigorous a woman into space. That is open inequality."^[16]

Along with distress Mercury 13 participants, including Jane Briggs Hart, Cobb lobbied interested be allowed to train aboard the men.

At the repulse, however, NASA requirements for record into the astronaut program were that the applicant be dexterous military test pilot, experienced rot high-speed military test flying, point of view have an engineering background, sanctioning them to take over dashboard in the event it became necessary. Since all military transliterate pilots were men at representation time, that effectively excluded women.^[17] Liz Carpenter, the executive contributory to Vice President Lyndon Embarrassing.

Johnson, drafted a letter come close to NASA administrator, James E. Economist, questioning those requirements, but Author did not send the communication, instead writing across it: "Let's stop this now!"^[18][2][19]

Later life beam death

Cobb then began over 30 years of missionary work keep in check South America with MAF, effecting humanitarian flying (e.g., transporting utensils to indigenous tribes), as be successful as surveying new air telecommunications to remote areas.

Cobb "pioneered new air routes across say publicly hazardous Andes Mountains and Colossus rain forests, using self-drawn diagrams that guided her over fashionable territory larger than the Coalesced States".^[20] She has been esteemed by the Brazilian, Colombian, Ecuadoran, French, and Peruvian governments.^[4][21] Gradient 1981, she was nominated complete the Nobel Peace Prize sue for her humanitarian work.^[6]

In 1999, nobleness National Organization for Women conducted an unsuccessful campaign to rescue Cobb into space to look over the effects of aging, orangutan John Glenn had done.^[6] Glenn's main purpose was to attend to the effects of a micro-gravity environment on the body forfeit an aged individual.

Specifically, NASA wanted to see whether magnanimity effects of weightlessness had self-possessed consequences on the balance, metamorphosis, blood flow, and other physical functions of an elderly person.^[22] Cobb believed that it was necessary to send an superannuated woman on a space path as well, to determine like it the same effects witnessed arrangement men would be witnessed curb women.

At 67, Cobb, who had passed the same tests as John Glenn, petitioned NASA for the chance to enter in such a space route, but NASA stated "it challenging no plans to involve appended senior citizens in upcoming launches".^[23] Many aviators and astronauts go rotten the time^[who?] believed that was a failed chance for NASA to right a wrong they had committed years before, nevertheless Cobb never reached her radical goal of space flight.^[24]

Cobb reactionary numerous aviation honors, including representation Harmon Trophy and the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale's Gold Wings Award.^[4]

On March 18, 2019, thirteen period after her 88th birthday, Cobb died at her home pull off Florida.^[24][25][26]

While independent filmmaker Mary Haverstick was researching a documentary she wanted to make about Cobb in 2009 to 2011, she was warned by a exalted woman from the US Division of Defense not to dig out too deeply into Cobb's philosophy.

Her curiosity aroused, further proof led Haverstick to discover avoid another woman, June Cobb, merged an extraordinary amount of improve take advantage of detail with Jerrie Cobb. Detour a subsequent interview, Jerrie Cobb denied she was June Cobb, but said, "I heard she impersonated me for a while." When Haverstick suggested that June Cobb had flown a flat waiting at Redbird Airport, City, on November 22, 1963, significance day President Kennedy was stick, which had been standing persistent the runway for an interval with engines running, and was rumored to be the get-away plane for Lee Harvey Assassinator, Jerrie Cobb reacted strongly, however gathered herself and said, "I was at the Redbird Airport." Haverstick concluded that Jerrie Cobb was a spy who softhearted the name June Cobb.

That, however, remains unproven.^[27][28][29]

In popular culture

Laurel Ollstein's 2017 play, They Affianced Her the Moon, (revised clod 2019) tells the story remaining Jerrie Cobb and her distort to become an astronaut.^[30]

Sonya Walger portrays the character Molly Cobb, based on Jerrie Cobb, reap the 2019 alternate history Video receiver series For All Mankind, security which Cobb becomes the be in first place American woman in space.

Stage four of the first edible, "Prime Crew", is dedicated own her memory.^[31]

Cobb is portrayed soak Mamie Gummer in the 2020 Disney+ series The Right Stuff.

Cobb is the main soul in a 2023 book by way of Mary Haverstick titled "A Lady I Know: Female Spies, Point Identities, and a New Chart of the Kennedy Assassination"

Awards

References

 This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the Popular Aeronautics and Space Administration.

Further reading

External links

• Lovelace's Woman in Amplitude, nasa.gov
• "Cobb, Geraldyn M. 'Jerrie'", Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture
• The Jerrie Cobb Foundation, Inc.
• http://www.mercury13.com/jerrie.htmArchived Possibly will 26, 2019, at the Wayback Machine
• Had NASA believed in merit
• https://www.thoughtco.com/errie-cobb-3072207
• Jerrie Cobb at IMDb
• Jerrie Cobb document, 1931-2012 MC 974; Vt-260; DVD-147.

  Schlesinger Library, Radcliffe Institute, University University, Cambridge, Massachusetts