Katherine Sui Fun Cheung facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Katherine Sui Fun Cheung
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1936
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| Born |
Zhang Ruifen
December 12, 1904 Enping, Guangdong province, China
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| Died | September 2, 2003 (aged 98) |
| Resting place | Forest Lawn Hollywood Hills |
| Nationality | Chinese (naturalized American, 1936) |
| Education | Los Angeles Conservatory of Music |
| Known for | first Chinese woman to receive a pilot's license/Chinese-American woman to receive a commercial flying license in the United States |
| Aviation career | |
| Full name | Katherine Sui Fun Cheung |
| Flight license | 30 March 1932 |
Katherine Sui Fun Cheung (born Zhang Ruifen; 1904–2003) was a brave Chinese pilot. She was one of the first Chinese women to get a pilot's license. She also became the first Chinese woman to earn an international flying license. Later, she became a citizen of the United States.
Early Life and Dreams
Katherine Cheung, whose birth name was Zhang Ruifen, was born on December 12, 1904. Her hometown was Enping in Guangdong province, China. Her mother, Nie Qinglan, was a student, and her father, Zhang Shunbing, was a businessman. He often worked with Chinese people living overseas in the United States.
When Katherine was young, her mother took her to Guangzhou. There, she went to primary school and then high school. She finished school in 1921 after passing an important exam.
After graduating, at age seventeen, Katherine moved to the United States. She planned to study music at different schools, including the Los Angeles Conservatory of Music. Her father came with her to the U.S. He would take her to Dycer Airport in Los Angeles to practice driving. Katherine was amazed by the airplanes there. She quickly decided she wanted to learn how to fly.
After three years of studying piano, Katherine left school. She married George Young, her father's business partner. She kept her own name but changed it to Katherine Cheung for America. By 1931, she had two daughters, Doris and Dorothy. She was still determined to learn to fly. A friend in China told her that flying schools there did not accept women pilots. This was common, as only a small number of pilots were women, even in the U.S.
Becoming a Pilot
In 1931, Katherine Cheung began taking flying lessons. She studied with the Chinese Aeronautical Association in Los Angeles. Her flight instructor was Bert Ekstein. On March 30, 1932, she earned her private pilot's license. Many newspapers reported that she was the first Chinese woman to get a license in the U.S. Some even said she had a commercial license.
After getting her license, Katherine kept learning. She often trained with military pilots. She learned advanced skills like aerobatics, which is flying tricks. She also studied how planes are built, navigation, and international flight routes. These skills made her a very versatile pilot. She used them to perform exciting tricks at air shows. She could do barrel rolls, fly upside down, and perform loops.
Soon after getting her license, Katherine started performing at air shows. She flew along the California Coast. The Chinese American community was thrilled by her shows. They even collected money to buy her a plane. Famous actress Anna May Wong and other Chinese Americans raised $2,000. They bought Katherine a 125-horsepower Fleet biplane.
Katherine also took part in several flying races. These included the Los Angeles Women's Championship in 1935. In 1935, she joined the Ninety-Nines club. This was a group for women pilots started by Amelia Earhart. That same year, Katherine earned her international flight license. This allowed her to fly commercially. She was believed to be the first Chinese woman commercial pilot.
In 1936, Katherine became a United States citizen. But she still dreamed of going back to China. She wanted to work for the Chinese government and teach aviation. She believed that air travel could greatly help areas without good roads or other transportation.
Later Life and Legacy
After Japan invaded China in 1937, Katherine decided to return home. She wanted to open a flying school there. She toured Chinese American communities to raise money. She collected $7,000 for her plan. She bought a Ryan ST-A plane. However, her cousin was killed while testing the plane. Katherine's father worried about her safety. He made her promise to stop flying.
She continued to fly for a few more years. But the loss of her friend Amelia Earhart, her cousin, and her father was very hard. Her brother also died in China in 1942. These losses finally convinced her to stop flying. She became the main support for her mother.
During World War II, Katherine became a flight instructor in the United States. When the war ended, she bought a flower shop. She ran the shop until she retired in 1970.
In 1989, Katherine, one of her daughters, and her son-in-law visited China. They went to her hometown of Enping. Their visit received a lot of media attention. Various groups, the local government, and the aviation industry honored her. Until the 1990s, she lived in Chinatown. Then, she moved to Thousand Oaks, California. She stayed there until her death.
On March 4, 2001, Katherine received a special medal. The Chinese Consul General of Los Angeles presented it to her. It was for her important work as an aviation pioneer. This ceremony happened when she was added to the International Women in Aviation's Pioneer Hall of Fame.
Death and Recognition
Katherine Cheung passed away at age 98 on September 2, 2003. She was buried at Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Hollywood Hills.
Her achievements are remembered in several places. There is a display about her at the Aviation Museum in Enping, China. The Beijing Air Force Aviation Museum also recognizes her. The Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum calls her the "First Asian American Aviatrix." The Flight Path Walk of Fame in Los Angeles has a bronze plaque with her name.
Besides these honors, a documentary about her was made in 2016. It was called Aviatrix: The Katherine Sui Fun Cheung Story. In 2017, two statues were built in her hometown of Enping, China, to honor her. She was also featured in a short documentary for CCTV in 2019.
