Penny Rafferty Hamilton facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Penny Rafferty Hamilton
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Penny Rafferty
February 18, 1948 Pennsylvania, US
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| Nationality | American |
| Education | AA dental hygiene education, Temple University, 1968, BA, education, Columbia College, 1976 MS, adult and continuing education, University of Nebraska–Lincoln, PhD, communications, University of Nebraska–Lincoln |
| Known for | Teaching Women to Fly Research Project (2008–2010) |
| Spouse(s) | William Alexander Hamilton III. |
| Awards | Colorado Aviation Hall of Fame, 2011 Colorado Women's Hall of Fame, 2014 Colorado Authors' Hall of Fame, 2021 |
Penny Rafferty Hamilton, born on February 18, 1948, is an American who used to be a pilot. She is also a teacher, writer, and photographer. She is well-known for her two-year study called the Teaching Women to Fly Research Project. This project looked at why fewer women become pilots and suggested many ways to help more women join aviation. Penny also loves to get kids excited about flying. She visits schools and libraries dressed as "Penny the Pilot." She and her husband even hold a World Aviation Speed Record from 1991! Besides writing for aviation magazines, she has written books about the history of Granby, Colorado, where she lived for many years. She has been honored in several Halls of Fame, including the Colorado Aviation Hall of Fame.
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Becoming a Pilot and Setting Records
Penny became interested in flying because she often helped her husband with navigation and radio during his flights. She earned her pilot's license in 1988.
A World Speed Record
On October 22, 1991, Penny and her husband flew from Lincoln, Nebraska, to New Orleans, Louisiana. They flew at an amazing speed of 179.92 miles per hour! They finished the trip in just 4 hours and 39 minutes. This flight set a World Aviation Speed Record for their plane's weight class, and it is still a record today. The record was checked and confirmed by important aviation groups. Penny stopped flying in 2007.
Inspiring Girls to Fly
Only a small number of pilots in the United States are women. Penny wanted to change this and encourage more girls and women to learn to fly.
Penny the Pilot Visits Schools
Her first idea was to visit schools and libraries. She would dress up as "Penny the Pilot" in old-fashioned flying clothes, like the famous pilot Amelia Earhart. She talked to children about aviation and how exciting it is. For this work, she received an award in 2009 called the 7 Everyday Hero Award. She also got an award from the Federal Aviation Administration for being an Aviation Education Champion.
Helping Women Become Pilots
In 2008, Penny started a big study called the Teaching Women to Fly Research Project. She talked to women who were learning to fly and to male flight instructors. She wanted to find out what made it hard for women to become pilots.
Barriers for Women in Aviation
Penny found ten main reasons why women might not pursue flight training. These included not having enough money, feeling like flight schools didn't care about women students, and instructors changing often. She also noted communication problems between women and male instructors. Other issues were a lack of female role models, not being familiar with plane parts, and needing more support from friends and family.
Strategies for Success
Penny also came up with 101 ideas to help women overcome these challenges. Some of her ideas included creating special loan programs for women in colleges. She also suggested making online groups where female pilots could support each other. Another idea was to create flight training that better suited different learning styles for women. This study led to a textbook called Absent Aviators: Gender Issues in Aviation.
Aviation Museum Work
Penny helped start the Emily Warner Field Aviation Museum, which opened in 2015. She volunteered there for many years, helping to share aviation history. She also volunteered for the Colorado Airport History Preservation Project. Now, she volunteers for aviation groups in Idaho.
Writing and Books
Penny Hamilton writes a lot for aviation magazines. She has also written two instruction manuals to help women learn how to fly.
Books About History and Aviation
She also writes articles about the history of Grand County and Granby, Colorado. She wrote a book called Around Granby and another local history book, Granby, Then & Now: A quick history. For younger children, she wrote A to Z: Your Grand County History Alphabet in 2017. In 2019, she wrote a national book about aviation careers and history called America's Amazing Airports. She also wrote Inspiring Words for Sky and Space Women in 2020. Her book 101 Trailblazing Women of Air and Space was published in 2021. In 2023, she wrote Grand County for a history series.
Awards and Honors
Penny Hamilton has received many awards for her work.
Special Recognition
In 1994, a special flight path intersection in the sky over Colorado was named after her by the Federal Aviation Administration. This shows how important her contributions were.
Other Achievements
In 2011, she received a Lifetime Achievement Award from her local Chamber of Commerce. She also won the National Aviation Journalist Award in 2012. In 2013, her college honored her with a Distinguished Alumni Award. The University of Nebraska also gave her an Alumni Achievement Award in 2015. In 2019, she was named Citizen of the Year for Grand County, Colorado.
Hall of Fame Inductions
Penny was inducted into the Colorado Aviation Hall of Fame in 2011. She was also honored in the Colorado Women's Hall of Fame in 2014. Her name is even on a plaque in the International Forest of Friendship in Kansas. In 2021, she was inducted into the Colorado Authors Hall of Fame.
Personal Life
Penny married William Alexander Hamilton III in 1971. He was a military officer, and his work took them to many places, including Germany. After he retired, they settled in Nebraska. They lived in Granby, Colorado, from 1989 until 2024. They now live in Idaho.
