Penny Rafferty Hamilton facts for kids

Penny Rafferty Hamilton (born February 18, 1948) is an American pilot, teacher, writer, and photographer. She is known for helping more women and girls get interested in flying. Penny even visits schools as "Penny the Pilot" to share her love for aviation! She and her husband hold a World Aviation Speed Record from 1991. Penny has written many books about flying and the history of Granby, Colorado, where she lives. She was honored in the Colorado Aviation Hall of Fame in 2011 and the Colorado Women's Hall of Fame in 2014.

Early Life and Education

Penny Rafferty was born on February 18, 1948, in Pennsylvania. She went to Columbia University and earned a bachelor's degree. She also studied dental hygiene at Temple University in 1968.

Penny started her career as a dental hygienist in Rhode Island. There, she met her husband, who was a military officer. They lived in different places, including Germany. In 1979, they moved to Nebraska. Penny continued her education at the University of Nebraska. She earned a master's degree and a PhD in communications.

Career Highlights

Penny Hamilton became a professor of communications at the University of Nebraska. She also wrote an advice column for newspapers and hosted a radio show. She even appeared on television every week!

Later, Penny and her husband bought a newspaper. They also started a business that helped other companies with management and public relations. One of their clients was the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association, which is a group for pilots.

Aviation Adventures

Penny became interested in flying because she helped her husband with navigation and radio. She earned her pilot's license in 1988.

World Speed Record

On October 22, 1991, Penny and her husband flew from Lincoln, Nebraska to New Orleans, Louisiana. They flew at a speed of 179.92 miles per hour (289.55 km/h). The trip took them 4 hours and 39 minutes. They set a World Aviation Speed Record for their plane's weight class. This record still stands today! The record was checked by important aviation groups like the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale. Penny stopped flying in 2007.

Inspiring Future Pilots

Only a small number of licensed pilots in the US are women. Penny wanted to encourage more women and girls to fly. She started visiting schools and libraries as "Penny the Pilot." She dresses up like the famous woman aviator Amelia Earhart. For this work, she received the 7 Everyday Hero Award in 2009. She also won the Federal Aviation Administration's Aviation Education Champion Award.

In 2008, Penny started the Teaching Women to Fly Research Project. This two-year study looked at why fewer women become pilots. She talked to women flight students and male flight instructors.

Penny found ten main reasons why women might not pursue flight training. These included:

• Not enough money.
• Feeling that flight schools didn't pay enough attention to women students.
• Flight instructors changing jobs often.
• Trouble communicating with male flight instructors.
• Not many female pilot role models.
• Not being familiar with how planes work.
• Lack of experience reading maps.
• Not having other women pilots to guide them.
• Lack of support from friends and family.

She also suggested 101 ways to help more women get into flying. Some ideas were:

• Creating special loan programs for women in colleges.
• Starting online groups for women pilots to support each other.
• Developing flight training that fits different learning styles for women.

This study helped create a textbook called Absent Aviators: Gender Issues in Aviation. Penny wrote a chapter for this book.

Aviation Museums

Penny Hamilton helped start the Emily Warner Field Aviation Museum. It opened in July 2015 in Grand County, Colorado. She volunteers at the museum and helps with the Colorado Airport History Preservation Project.

Writing and Books

The town of Granby, Colorado

Penny Hamilton writes often for aviation magazines. She has also written two flight instruction manuals for women pilots.

She enjoys writing about the history of Grand County, Colorado and the town of Granby, Colorado, where she lives. Her books include:

• Around Granby (part of the "Images of America" series).
• Granby, Then & Now: A quick history (2005).
• A to Z: Your Grand County History Alphabet (2017), a book for young children.
• America's Amazing Airports (2019), about aviation careers and history.

Memberships and Honors

Penny Hamilton is a member of many aviation groups. These include the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association and the Colorado Pilots Association. She is also part of the Spirit of Flight Center and Wings Over the Rockies Air and Space Museum. She is a member of the National and Colorado 99s, and Women in Aviation International.

Awards and Recognition

In 1994, a special aviation intersection in Colorado was named after her by the Federal Aviation Administration. It is called "Hamilton" and is high in the sky at 15,500 feet!

Penny has received many awards:

• 2011: Lifetime Achievement Award from the Greater Granby Area Chamber of Commerce.
• 2012: National Aviation Journalist Award.
• 2013: Columbia University Distinguished Alumni Award for her amazing career.
• 2015: University of Nebraska Alumni Achievement Award.
• 2019: Named Grand County, Colorado, Citizen of the Year.

She was inducted into the Colorado Aviation Hall of Fame in 2011. In 2014, she was also inducted into the Colorado Women's Hall of Fame. In 2013, her name was carved on a plaque at the International Forest of Friendship in Atchison, Kansas.

In 2018, Penny was featured in a TV show called Great Colorado Women. This show profiles women who are in the Colorado Women's Hall of Fame.

Personal Life

In 1971, Penny married William Alexander Hamilton, III. He was a military officer. They lived in different places because of his work. After he retired in 1978, they settled in Nebraska. They have lived in Granby, Colorado, since 1989.