Born: 5 April 1906, Australia
Died: 11 December 1980
Country most active: Australia
Also known as: NA
Pioneering aviator Freda Thompson was the first Australian woman to fly solo from the United Kingdom to Australia, completing the journey in a Gypsy Moth Major in 39 days of flying. After qualifying for her private pilot licence in 1930 and her commercial licence two years later, she became the first woman instructor in the British Empire when she earned her instructor rating in 1933. In 1934 she earned the Great Britain Air Ministry Private Pilot Certificate, which enabled her to ‘fly all types of machines’. She became the first woman president of the Royal Victorian Aero Club in the 1930s and was made a life member in 1941. She was a founding member of the Australian Women Pilots’ Association and was appointed Officer of the Order of the British Empire in 1972 for services to aviation.
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