H is for Hilda Hewlett - Pioneer Women in Aviation: A-Z Challenge

Hilda Beatrice Hewlett (1864-1943)

Hilda Hewlett was among the oldest pioneer ladies to impact aviation. She was 47-years-old when she received her pilot’s license, but her contribution to aviation more than made up for her lost time in years.

Born in London in 1864 at the time of America’s Civil War, Hilda was one of nine children. Her father was a wealthy vicar in the Church of England, due to a previous inheritance. Raised and educated by a governess, Hilda discovered a talent for art and attended the National Art Training School in South Kensington. Some of her woodwork, metalwork and needlework were qualified enough for an exhibition. At 21, she trained as a nurse in Germany, but it’s not clear what she did with this knowledge.

In 1888, she married at 24 a young lawyer, Maurice Hewlett, and had two children. She was a short woman, but being short did not hold back her youthful exuberance for life. She took up bicycling and enjoyed going to automobile rallies, where in one event (1906), she rode in the back seat behind her friend, the only female racer entered.

In 1909, Hilda attended a meeting on aviation that sparked a lifelong interest in flying, although Maurice was less enthused. "Women will never be as successful in aviation as men,” he said. “They have not the right kind of nerve." That same year Hilda traveled to France under the pseudonym “Grace Bird” (she didn’t want to embarrass Maurice) to study aeronautics at the Mourmelon-leGrand aerodrome. She struck up a friendship with French aviation engineer Gustav Blondeau and the two formed a business partnership. When she returned to England she was the happy owner of a Farman III biplane, which she called “Blue Bird.”

Hilda flying her Henri Farman III biplane, "Blue Bird"

In 1910, she opened and ran a flying school with Blondeau, the first flying school in the UK. They called it Hewlett and Blondeau Flying School. Thirteen students graduated in the 1-1/2 years the school was operated, including her son, who went on to have a distinguished flying career in the UK and New Zealand. The school had a zero accident rate, which was incredible at the time. Hilda too graduated, becoming the first woman in the UK to receive a pilot’s license. She was 47. Meanwhile, Hilda entered some air shows and competitions, flying her new Henri Farman biplane. She won the quick-start aviation competition in 1912.

Omnia Works was started next by Hilda and Blondeau in 1914, but that same year, Hilda and Maurice also separated. The business was a huge success. More than 800 planes were built by Omnia Works during World War I. Hilda created quite the image as the company’s red-cheeked, tenacious female owner. She drove around in her car with Kroshka her dog sitting in the back seat, dressing as she pleased. Apparently, her clothes were a bit unusual by the day’s standards, as was her short hair style. Business thrived but died after the war. They tried building farm equipment but without success and had to close.  

Hilda with her dog, Kroshka

Omnia Works hired 700 employees

More than 800 planes were built

Hilda moved to Tauranga, New Zealand with her family in 1926, where she lived the remainder of her life in support of aviation. Her grandson Gail Hewlett later wrote a book about her life, The Irrepressible Mrs. Hilda Beatrice Hewlett (1999).


Sources:
http://www.scienceandsociety.co.uk/results.asp?image=10301886&wwwflag=2&imagepos=8
http://www.teara.govt.nz/en/biographies/4h30/hewlett-hilda-beatrice
Before Amelia: Women Pilots in the Early Days of Aviation, Eileen F. Lebow, Brassey's Inc., 2002
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hilda_Hewlett; http://thethunderchild.com/YouFlyGirl/Pilots/HildaHewlett.html; http://www.uh.edu/engines/epi2667.htm