Famous Aircraft Pilot Beryl Markham

Beryl Markham

In 1933, Beryl Markham was the first woman to earn a commercial pilot’s license in Kenya. She flew passengers, cargo, and mail through the most remote and inhospitable regions of Africa, in most cases landing and taking off using empty fields because of the lack of runways. In 1936, Markham became the first woman to fly solo from east to west across the Atlantic.

West with the Night, Markham’s memoir about her life as a bush pilot, became an international best seller.