Who are the Ninety-Nines (never Ninety-Niners), and why was this club started?
At the end of the 1929 Women’s Air Derby, the racers gathered to talk about forming an organization for women pilots to assist each other in obtaining flying jobs. A letter went out to all the licensed (more correctly, certificated) women pilots in the United States—slightly over one hundred. Ninety-nine women responded by the deadline. Cutesy names were considered, but the number of charter members was decided upon. The Ninety-Nines organization is now worldwide and members fly everything—including airlines, military and space vehicles. Their headquarters and museum are in Oklahoma City and among numerous projects their Amelia Earhart Scholarship program has helped thousands of women along in their aviation careers. I was international president 1988–1990.
There’s an interesting connection between you and outer space. At one time, you might have been an astronaut! What is the story behind the Mercury 13?
Dr. Randy Lovelace had a large clinic in Albuquerque with a NASA contract to provide extensive physical examinations in the astronaut selection process. At the time of the original Mercury 7 astronauts, their vehicle into space was very small and Dr. Lovelace decided to test women pilots who were smaller. Without the knowledge of NASA, he selected and tested twenty-five women for the quite thorough weeklong testing at his clinic. Thirteen women passed the tests, and a Hollywood producer later named the group “The Mercury 13,” which caught on. (An inappropriate name since we really had nothing to do with either NASA or the Mercury program.) Dr. Lovelace arranged for the group to go to Pensacola for the continuing selection process and two weeks of testing there. I was teaching flying at the University of Oklahoma then and had to quit my job to take two weeks off at the beginning of a new semester. NASA got wind of Dr. Lovelace’s plan and shut it down. So, I became an unemployed astro-not. As a result, I searched for an aviation job and became employed by the Beech Aircraft factory with the dream job of all time, flying their entire line in all forty-eight contiguous states.
What do you do when you’re not writing books or flying planes?
I met Bob Jessen while we both flew for Beech Aircraft and we married in 1964. We left Beech in 1967 to start a dealership in Boise, Idaho, where I operated the flight school and Bob sold airplanes. I also went into the airplane insurance business, and we raised two perfect children—I taught our daughter to fly (who has provided us with three grandchildren), and our son works for Disney. I’ve always been quite active in the Ninety-Nines, and I served on the Boise Airport Commission, have flown the Air Race Classic transcontinental air race ten times, and do speaking engagements, etc. We’re now retired, and at eighty I continue to own an airplane and fly.
Sky Girls was originally published as The Powderpuff Derby of 1929 and was released in 2002. How would you hope this new release will engage and inspire this new generation of readers picking up your book?
A nontraditional aviation career selection for young girls has moved over to the somewhat more common side of the ledger. And, yes, I’ve taught women over age sixty to fly. I believe an introduction to the pioneers will light the fire so women readers will think, I can do that!
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Illinois native Gene Nora Jessen was introduced to flying as a cadet in the Chicago Civil Air Patrol. She was drawn to the University of Oklahoma’s flight training program, became a flight instructor on the flight school faculty, and finished working her way through college teaching flying. Along with twenty-five female pilots, she was invited to participate in an astronaut research program about the time of the original Mercury astronauts in 1961. Along with twelve other candidates, she passed the physical exams and they became called the Mercury 13, although further testing was canceled.
Beech Aircraft Corp. (1962)
The stars were aligned in Jessen’s favor, and she was hired by Beech Aircraft Corp in Wichita for what she considered the dream job of all time. She became one of the “Three Musketeers,” flying one of three airplanes in formation for three months across forty-eight states introducing the new Beech model. Continuing on at the Beech factory, she obtained further ratings and flew the entire Beech line.
Boise Air Service (about 1982)
Gene Nora met her husband Bob at Beech, and they soon migrated to Boise, Idaho, to found a Beech dealership.
Jessen has remained active in aviation, serving on the Boise Airport Commission; being installed in the Idaho Aviation Hall of Fame; receiving the Mercury 13 NASA Award, Master Pilot Award, and an honorary PhD; and becoming an international president of the Ninety-Nines. She is the author of three books—on aviation, of course.
Gene Nora and Bob Jessen, who was a World War II B-29 pilot, are the parents of two children and are now retired. Gene Nora Jessen flew a dozen air races through the years and is still flying.
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