Women in Aviation Wall of Fame:
Eileen Vollick

Eileen Vollick developed a desire to fly when she was quite young. In fact, she was so young the Canadian government made her wait until she turned 19 before she could get her pilot’s license. While working toward her goal of becoming a pilot, she began to set records. She was the first Canadian woman to parachute into water in 1927. Her passion for aviation took Vollick to new places.

While working as a textile designer in Hamilton, Ontario, Vollick also attended flight school. She attended night classes in order to get her license. She also took early morning flying lessons so she could work her full-time job.

Despite the initial delay, Vollick became Canada’s first licensed female pilot, and 77th overall, in March 1928. Due to her short stature, she required extra seat cushions to prop her up to see through the aircraft’s windscreen. Vollick performed aerobatic flying across North America while also giving speeches. She retired from flying after she married in 1929. Vollick accomplished a lot in a very short time.

Vollick’s accomplishments in aviation were still remembered years later. In 1975, the Ninety-Nines, an international organization of women pilots, awarded Vollick the Amelia Earhart medallion for her contribution to aviation. The following year, a plaque at the John C. Munro Hamilton International Airport commemorating Vollick’s accomplishments in flying was unveiled. In 2008, on the one hundredth anniversary of Vollick’s birth, the main terminal building at the Wiarton Airport, her hometown, was renamed in her honour.