Maxine Dunlap Bennett

Maxine Dunlap Bennett (January 26, 1908 – c. September 1977[1]), was an American aviator. She was the first licensed woman glider pilot and first woman glider club president in the United States.[2][3][4][5] She flew her record-setting glider rating qualification flight over the sand dunes of Ocean Beach, San Francisco, California, on April 28, 1929, for a distance of 990 ft (300 m) and a flight duration of 50 seconds, exceeding the then-required minimum of 30 seconds, to obtain her Glider flying certificate.[2]

Life and career

Maxine Dunlap was born in 1908 in Pleasanton, California, the daughter of Henry H. and Catherine M. Dunlap (née Langan).[6][7] She grew up in Oakland, California, and attended the University of California.[note 1] The February 1939 Charlotte Observer writes that Dunlap became "smitten with lindberghitis" in 1927;[8][note 2] she earned her power flying certificate (number 5894) in 1928 as the first woman in San Francisco to earn a pilot's license.[3][2]

After accumulating over 60 hours of power flying time she began taking gliding lessons, and three weeks later attained her glider rating, U.S. Department of Commerce glider certificate number 8.[3][8][9] The San Francisco Examiner of April 29, 1929 notes that Dunlap's glider qualification flight made her the first woman in the US to receive a glider pilot's license. Furthermore, her flight's duration of 50 seconds "far exceeded the record of 17 seconds flight formerly held by Amelia Earhart, the Atlantic flyer. Miss Earhart was unable to remain aloft for the requisite 30 seconds to qualify for a license."[2][10]

In March 1930 she became the first woman glider club president in the U.S. after being appointed by the National Glider Association as president of the Bay Region California Gliding Club.[3] She joined the newly-founded Ninety Nines in 1930 and participated in many air races. In 1935 she set the women world speed record for light airplanes in Tulsa, Oklahoma.[8][note 3]

Personal life

Dunlap married her original flight instructor, Donald A. Templeman (1902–1942), in 1929; they divorced in 1933.[4][11] In October 1934 she married Joseph J. Bennett Jr. (1901–1975), a Coca-Cola executive and former All American ('23, '24) University of Georgia tackle, and moved to Atlanta, Georgia.[12][13] According to the February 1939 Charlotte Observer, she "did all the flying in the family" in a 260-horsepower Gull Wing Stinson, flying so well that "even her husband flys[sic] with her anywhere at any time."[8]

On October 23, 1975, Joseph Bennett died in Oakland, California, aged 74.[14][13] The obituary notice in the Atlanta Constitution mentions Maxine as his surviving widow, alongside his brother and sister.[13][note 4]

See also

Further reading

Notes
  1. Dunlap's brief bio in the Charlotte Observer of February 26, 1939 (p. 70), mentions that she "attended the University of California" without elaborating on the specific campus[8]
  2. For reference, Charles Lindbergh's solo New York-to-Paris flight took place in May 1927
  3. Weight class under 450 lbs, speed achieved 76.799[9]
  4. Maxine was approximately 67 years old at the time of Joseph's death. There is no mention in the obituary of any additional family members

References
  1. "Maxine Bennett: Social Security Death Index (SSDI) Death Record". GenealogyBank. Retrieved October 27, 2021.
  2. "Bay Girl Licensed as First U. S. Woman Glider Pilot", The San Francisco Examiner, April 29, 1929. Article quote: "Maxine Dunlap ... yesterday qualified as the first woman in the United States to hold a glider pilot's license."
  3. "Girl is Head of Glider Club", Oakland Tribune, March 7, 1930
  4. "Air Romance in Divorce 'Spin'". Oakland Tribune. September 14, 1933. p. 1.
  5. "A Girl Flyer in a Motorless Ship". Chicago Tribune. May 12, 1929.
  6. "United States Census, 1910". FamilySearch. 2020. Retrieved August 1, 2020.
  7. "Marriage Certificate". FamilySearch. September 11, 1929. Retrieved August 10, 2020.
  8. "Wings Over Dixie - Ninety Niners", The Charlotte Observer, February 26, 1939, Article quote: "She was smitten with lindberghitis in '27 and a year later became the proud owner of private license #5894"
  9. "Maxine Dunlap Bennett" (PDF). Ninety Nine News Letter. May 1939. p. 6.
  10. "Meet 5 Female Daredevils From Bay Area History". KQED. Retrieved April 17, 2023.
  11. "Mrs. Templeman Divorces Flyer". The Times (San Mateo, California). September 14, 1933.
  12. "Maxine Dunlap Again is Bride". The San Francisco Examiner. October 18, 1934.
  13. "Joseph J. Bennett". The Atlanta Constitution. October 26, 1975. p. 96.
  14. "California Death Index, 1940-1997". FamilySearch. 2020. Retrieved August 1, 2020.
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