Solo Flights around the World

The Honorable Mrs Victor Bruce, as she was known, was born Mildred, Mary, Easter Petre. Her mother was an American actress who had immigrated to Britain, her father was a descendant of Sir William Petre, a noble man at the court of several British Monarchs: Henry VIII, Edward VI, Queen Mary and Queen Elizabeth.

Mrs. Bruce had always been very adventurous and had a taste for speed. As a young lady, she had had a motor-bike with a side car, and later, sport cars. She married Victor Bruce, a racing car driver, who was also a speed fanatic. Together, toward the end of the twenties, they took place in many races and rallies, including the Monte Carlo Rally which they won in 1926. They drove all around Europe, and Mrs. Bruce wrote two books on their motoring expeditions, one in 1927 and another in1928.

In 1930, Mrs Bruce spotted an aeroplane in a shop window with a sign :
« Blackburn Bluebird, Honey moon Model, Ready to go anywhere ». It was a biplane with two seats side by side and folding wings. On asking: « Can one fly around the world in it ? », the dealer replied : « Of course, Madam, the wings can be folded… »

Just for fun, Mrs. Bruce opened an atlas and drew a line through Europe and Asia, all the way to Japan. She discovered the immensity of the Pacific Ocean, but remembered the dealer had said the wings could be folded. With this in mind, she decided that both herself and the aeroplane could be transported across the ocean on a liner. Mrs. Bruce purchased the aeroplane for five hundred pounds and bought a set of maps and charts. On visiting the Minister of Aviation to disclose her intentions to fly around the world, Mrs. Bruce was asked how long she had been holding a pilot's license. « I haven't got one yet but I intend to get one before going. » she replied..

Subsequently, Mrs. Bruce took flying lessons and was sent solo after one week, obtaining her license at the end of the second.

The Bluebird was sent back to the factory to have a ferry tank fitted on the passenger seat. The aeroplane was given the registration G-ABDS.

Skeptics believed Mrs. Bruce would not make it across the English Channel and dubbed it : "a bloody daft stunt". Not to be deterred, she picked up navigation very quickly, but refused to learn Morse Code. On board the aeroplane, Mrs. Bruce had a rudimentary radio set capable of sending automatically a distress message, a spare propeller fitted beneath the fuselage, and a dictaphone to record her thoughts during her traveling.

Her American mother gave her daughter an American flag to be dropped on the house where she was born in New Albany in Indiana.

With only a small shoulder bag containing her husband's compass, her passport, logbook, a bottle of water, sun helmet, light cotton dresses and an evening frock, Mrs. Bruce took off from Heston Field (now Heathrow Airport) near London on September 25, 1930. It was only eight weeks since Mrs. Bruce had obtained her Pilot's License. Just prior to her departure, Mrs. Bruce had hand-painted the name of her aeroplane, "Bluebird", on the side of the fuselage. Her father, husband, and son Anthony, were present to see her take off.

Four hours later, Mrs. Bruce landed in Munich, and on her fourth day away she was over the Persian Gulf. She had already had a few close encounters with disaster. Near Belgrade, as Mrs. Bruce was following a train, it disappeared into a tunnel, hardly giving her time to make a steep turn to avoid crashing on the hill side. Above Turkey, as she was wiping oil from the windscreen, she accidentally kicked one of the rudder pedals, and the aeroplane went into a spin, recovering less than 500 feet from the ground.

While crossing the Persian Gulf the engine lost oil pressure, and Mrs. Bruce managed to reach the coast and land on a salt lake. Unfortunately the crust was covering a sea of mud, and the aeroplane nosed in on landing, breaking the propeller. Mrs. Bruce escaped with only minor scratches, and later, dehydrated and exhausted, she was rescued by tribesmen. Help finally came three days later when the British Officers of the radio station of Jask in Iran, arrived by boat. After Bluebird had been pulled from the salt lake, the propeller was replaced, as was the oil line which had caused the oil leak.

Mrs. Bruce was then able to continue her flight to Calcutta, Rangoon, across the Gulf of Bengal, and onto Bangkok, the capital of what was then known as Siam.

In Indo-China, the French Commissaire organized a tiger hunt for her, and when Mrs. Bruce finally arrived in Hanoi, she was received by Colonel Premoral, the Chief of the Air Force. Mrs. Bruce received the "Medal of the Order of the Thousand Elephants and the White Umbrella" from the Governor of Hanoi, being the first person to have flown solo from London to Hanoi.

In Hong Kong, Mrs. Bruce was received by the Governor, Sir William Peal, before stopping in Amoy and Shanghai. She had planned to land in Tokyo but was forced to divert to Seoul in Korea, due to a law in Japan preventing any one looking down on the Emperor. As the Emperor was attending military maneuvers, no one was permitted to fly over the area. Two days later, with the Emperor back in his palace, Mrs. Bruce was able to resume her flight across Japan, and experienced wonderful views of Mount Fujiyama. Mrs. Mikimoto gave her a pearl necklace.

On December 4, Bluebird , with her wings folded, was loaded onto the liner, Empress of Japan, which sailed to Vancouver.

On December 16, Mrs. Bruce was airborne again, flying to Seattle in the USA, and onto San Francisco in California.

By January 12th, Mrs. Bruce was in Los Angeles, flying on to San Diego, Phoenix, El Paso, Pecos, Dallas, and onto New Albany in Indiana, where she dropped the flag on her mother's house. From there she flew to Louisville in Kentucky, and Baltimore in Maryland. Taking off from a field too short, she stalled and spun into the ground. The plane flipped over and landed on its back. Fortunately for Mrs. Bruce, across the road was the Glen Martin Aircraft Factory where she was able to have her damaged aeroplane repaired. Ten men were put on the job, and in five days all the damages were repaired. Mr. Glenn Martin did more: he lengthened the field.

Mrs. Bruce continued on to New York, flying along Broadway, over the Statue of Liberty and on to the Empire State Building which she circled several times. The police were waiting for her when she landed at Glenn Curtiss Airfield, but she managed to talk her way out of it.

Once again, Bluebird , with wings folded, was loaded on the French liner Ile de France. During the journey, Mrs. Bruce met Esnault Pelterie, the inventor of the joy stick. In Cherbourg, the aeroplane was unloaded onto a truck which carried Bluebird to the airport. Wanting to arrive in Britain flying her aeroplane Mrs. Bruce landed in France and flew across the Channel. After the crossing she was joined by Amy Johnson and Winifred Spooner, who flew along side Mrs. Bruce from Lympe to Croydon, along with a number of other Bluebirds.

The Under Secretary of the Air, Mr. Montague, welcomed Mrs. Bruce on behalf of the Minister. Bluebird was exhibited in one of the underground stations in London before going to a museum, and the Blackburn Company donated another Bluebird to Mrs. Bruce.

Mrs. Bruce continued to fly, taking part in many flying competitions, and for some time she was part of the British Hospital's Air Pageant Flying Circus.

Mrs. Bruce started a company called Air Despatch, flying air freight, and using two De Haviland Rapide aircraft, and an Avro 642. During the war, she operated up to 32 aircraft in co-operation with the military, and later resumed riding horses, winning several prizes. She was part of a team of aviators who proved that in-flight refueling was possible, staying aloft 3 days. They only stopped after having a ruptured oil line.

Mrs. Bruce did not set any records during her flying but had set many records both on the water and on land. Mrs. Bruce had only 40 flying hours when she started her flight around the world with an open cockpit aeroplane. The flight took her five months to complete, and included two crashes. Her aircraft did not have the range to cross any of the major oceans, so she had no choice but to cross them in the comfort of an ocean liner. It could be argued that she did not "fly" entirely around the earth, but nevertheless, her exploit is certainly worthy of mention. Two years later, Wiley Post and Harold Gatty flew around the world in eight days. Perhaps Post's tragic death in 1935, or his being an American (and male), contributed to his celebrity status, where the achievements of Mrs. Bruce have almost been forgotten.

For many, she may have been only "a flying house wife", but she still deserves her place among the solo world flyers.