Name Susana Billinghurst | Role Aviator | |
 | ||
Died August 13, 1999, Salta, Argentina | ||
How to pronounce susana ferrari billinghurst aviator spanish argentina pronouncenames com
Susana Ferrari Billinghurst (1914–1999) was an Argentine aviator of Italian, English, and Irish descent. She was the first woman in South America to earn a commercial pilot's license, in 1937.
Contents
- How to pronounce susana ferrari billinghurst aviator spanish argentina pronouncenames com
- Career
- Family
- References
Career
In 1937, Billinghurst became the first woman in South America to earn a commercial pilot's license. In 1940, she piloted an amphibious Sikorsky S-43 in a 4,000-mile trip from Panama to Argentina.
During the 1943 Revolution Day in Argentina, she entered the presidential house with a symbolic bouquet, getting from the new president a historical engagement in favour of women's rights, particularly in the aviation field.
In November 1943, she made a flight to Uruguay with two other aviators (Elida Carles and Julia Perez Cattoni), officially representing the Argentine government.
Family
Billinghurst was the grandmother of actress Luciana Pedraza, who herself is married to Hollywood legend and Oscar winner Robert Duvall. She is also the granddaughter of British General Robert Billinghurst, the niece of Argentine aviator Lisandro Billinghurst, and cousin of Guillermo Billinghurst, who was the president of Peru.
The city of Billinghurst is named after her grandfather Mariano Billinghurst.
Her ancestor Sir Nicholas Woodroffe served as Lord Mayor of London and Member of Parliament for London.