✈️ Learn about Bessie Coleman, the first Black and Native American woman to earn a pilot’s license. | Smithsonian Channel Aviation Nation

First Black Female Pilot: Killed Days Before Her Dream Bessie Coleman became the first Black woman pilot in 1921 after every U.S. flight school rejected her. For 5 years she saved to open a flight school for Black aviators. April 30, 1926—3 days after buying her own plane—a loose wrench killed her at 34. She wasn't even flying. SOURCES & REFERENCES: First Black woman pilot June 15, 1921 - Wikipedia; National Air and Space Museum; Smithsonian Institution Rejected by U.S. flight schools - Women's