Celebrating 100 years of female flight - exclusively at Farnborough Airshow

Monday 14th July, 2008

Farnborough Airshow attendees are invited to an exclusive preview of a ground-breaking new book - “The 100 Greatest Women in Aviation” on Wednesday, July 16 at 12 noon. Authors, aviation journalist Liz Moscrop and partner Sanjay Rampal will participate in a photocall at the Aviation Bookshop (next to aircraft static, Site No. 76, close to the fighter jets near Food Court 2).

Published by Aerocomm, the book mirrors some key 2008 Airshow themes. This Farnborough Airshow sees several important aviation anniversaries, including a Century of female flight. A hundred years ago the first women took to the air as passengers in powered aircraft, flown by luminaries such as Wilbur Wright. The book costs £19.99 and there are pre-launch copies available exclusively at the show or online from www.aerocomm.aero while stocks last.

“The 100 Greatest Women in Aviation” is a series of biographies, highlighting the first passengers (Therese Peltier and Mrs Hart O Berg in 1908) through to aspiring present day record breakers such as Jo Kelland, who is aiming to be the youngest ever female airline pilot and Aisha Al Mansoori and Salma Al Balooshi. They made history last year when they became the first female pilots to be recruited by Etihad Airways from the UAE. The book follows progress from early wood and canvas bi-planes to the space age.

International in scope, the book features well-known names such as Amelia Earhart and Amy Johnson, as well as forgotten heroines, like Li Xiapeng and Hilda Yan, young Chinese pilots who barnstormed America during World War II to protest against the Japanese occupation of their country.

Liz says: “We loved writing this book. There are some epic tales: Jackie Cochrane, the first woman to break the sound barrier; and tragic tales - Caroline Aigle, the promising French fighter pilot, who died of cancer so that her child could live. One of our particular favourites was a fun story - American Pancho Barnes, a minister’s wife who was so bored on Sundays that she ‘buzzed’ her husband’s congregation.”

Liz and Sanjay have thrown down the gauntlet with their book, which they hope will provoke people into choosing their own personal favourite women aviators. British women featured in its pages are (in chronological order): Hilda Hewlett, Mrs Victor Bruce, Amy Johnson, Pauline Gower, Lettice Curtiss, Diana Barnato Walker, Shelia Scott, Anne Welch, Barbara Harmer, Judy Leden, Polly Vacher, Mandy Pantall, Michelle Goodman, Jennifer Murray and Jo Kelland.

Prestigious sponsorship

As an added bonus to attendees, the esteemed global dealer in transcontinental aircraft Aero Toy Store is gifting a copy of the book to the CEO of every leading company at the show. Aero Toy Store is the largest pre-owned corporate aircraft dealer in the world.

Also at 4.45pm on 16th July Liz and Sanjay will also be presenting the first copy of the book to the Royal Aeronautical Society, which is organising a press visit to Britain’s new National Aerospace Library at Farnborough at 15.45pm, departing from the Media centre. The gift copy is to commemorate the opening of such an important historical archive.
For more information contact Marcelle Nethersole on info@aerocomm.aero. Telephone: +44 (0) 1252 417633 until July 20, thereafter +44 (0) 1375 427 014

-Ends-

Notes to editors:
Liz Moscrop

Liz Moscrop’s route into aviation was circuitous. She started out performing and running a comedy club in Liverpool, UK. She then moved to the British Broadcasting Corporation's (BBC) news and current affairs publicity department and was (un)fortunate enough to be the public relations gopher for the world's first big interview with Princess Diana.

Fortunately, a happy journey where she was allowed into the cockpit on a long haul flight (pre 9/11) sparked a love affair with aviation and altered her career course. Now based in London, Liz earns her living writing about her favourite industry, and is a regular member of the Aerocomm team at airshows internationally, working on Flight Daily News.

She writes for aeronautical publications all over the world and, along with her colleagues at fourforces.aero, she helps flight training schools, conference producers and other industry players with their communications. She has plenty of hours in her logbook and no PPL yet. However, the intention is to finish one day and she takes heart from the fact she still has a long way to go before she catches up with the Duchess of Bedford, who got hers aged 64.

Sanjay Rampal

Sanjay Rampal’s lineage is deeply rooted in aviation - his father was a former jet fighter pilot in the Indian Air Force along with many of his brothers. The bluster and swagger of a combat pilot as seen through the eyes of Sanjay’s father struck a chord with him. It’s not surprising then that anything with a pointed nose, swept wings and fancy markings would catch his eye. But despite this Sanjay has never flown himself, however the stories in this book may have inspired him to pursue a licence to fly one day. Time will tell. With his feet on terra firma he chose the software engineering route, and serves as a consultant in the telecommunication sector. In 1999 he caught the travel bug, touring much of the United States, which gave him the opportunity to visit the military aircraft bone yards of Arizona and touch the relics of the Cold War.

He loves to write and hopes to have his first fictional novel published in the near future. Sanjay also provides writing and photographic coverage of air show events on behalf of aviation related publications. An avid runner and model maker in his spare time, Sanjay’s roots are firmly in London. Shedding the City Slicker suit, you will find him at times wandering through the Forest of Dean in the picturesque English County of Gloucestershire.

Media trip to the National Aerospace Library, please contact Scott Phillips on +44 (0)1252 701037 before noon on Tuesday 15th July.