Bessie Coleman was the first African American woman and first Native American woman to earn a pilot’s license.
Turned away by American flight schools, she learned French and earned her license in France in 1921. She became a popular stunt pilot and dreamed of opening a flight school for Black aviators.
Key Facts
- Lived: 1892 to 1926
- Earned her international pilot’s license in 1921
- Performed as a barnstorming stunt pilot
- Inspired the Bessie Coleman Aero Clubs
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