The First Stewardess

Ellen Church, a nurse from Iowa, wanted to become an airline pilot, but it wasn't possible for a woman in her day.

In 1930, she approached Steve Stimpson at Boeing Air Transport with the novel idea of placing nurses aboard airliners to help relieve the travelling public's fear of flying.

Church first flew as a stewardess between Oakland and Chicago for 18 months. She developed a training program for the first flight attendants. After an automobile accident, she completed her college degree and returned to nursing.