Alys McKey Bryant

Alys McKey Bryant

Alys McKey Bryant (1880–1954) was an American aviator. She was the first woman to fly on the Pacific Coast and in Canada, and one of the few female members of the Early Birds of Aviation—individuals who had solo piloted an aircraft prior to December 17, 1916. She cut short her brief career as a pilot after her husband, John Bryant, died while performing an air show in Victoria, Canada, in August 1913. During World War I she trained pilots.

Biography

Bryant began flying in 1912, when she answered a magazine advertisement offering "the ultimate in excitement" by Fred Bennett of the Bennett Aero Company of The Palms, California. Bennett's pilot, John Bryant, approved her and signed her on to his exhibition flying team as an airplane pilot.^[1] At the time of being signed on, she had never flown before, which was not uncommon during the time. Most pilots had to teach themselves to fly. On July 31, 1913, she became the first woman to fly in Canada.^[2]

Her real passions were repairing and building. Most of her work was the manual labor that, at the time, it was normally expected men would do. She had careers in aviation, submarine diving, automobiles, and was also into motorcycles. During World War I, she helped construct balloons and dirigibles at Akron, and trained pilots.^[3]

In 1913 Alys married John Bryant, who was killed in a crash ten weeks after their wedding. After that she continued to fly for a while, including a trip to Vancouver, where she flew in an exhibition for Edward, Prince of Wales, and his brother George, Duke of York – both future Kings of England.^[4]

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