Catherine Penney is a New Zealand pilot and aviation instructor. She was the first woman in New Zealand to gain her helicopter pilot's licence.
Penney (née Matheson) learned to fly in 1960 at Wellington Aero Club in Piper Cubs, and in 1964 gained instructor ratings at Auckland Flying School at Ardmore.[1] In 1975 she was the first woman in New Zealand to gain a helicopter pilot's licence,[2] and in 1978 became New Zealand's first female helicopter instructor.[3] In 1981 Penney started Heli-Flight Wairarapa with Laurie Bargh.[1] Penney later worked for the Civil Aviation Authority as an auditor and as a member of the Personnel Licensing team, inspecting flight training organisations and testing flight examiners.[4] She retired in 2017.[5]
References edit
- ^ a b Harris, Graeme (20 October 2015). "Women Leaders in Aviation Summit [powerpoint presentation]". Aviation New Zealand. Retrieved 30 July 2022.
- ^ "First woman 'copter pilot". The Press. 18 October 1975. Retrieved 30 July 2022 – via Paperspast.
- ^ "Another female first". The Press. 22 November 1978. Retrieved 30 July 2022 – via Paperspast.
- ^ "Meet the CAA's Personnel Licensing Unit" (PDF). Vector: Pointing to Safer Aviation (3): 22–23. May–June 2008.
- ^ "15A Investigations – a Fair Examination" (PDF). Vector (January–February 2017): 3. 2017.