Katharine Stinson
3/28/2023 | 59sVideo has Closed Captions
Katharine Stinson was the Federal Aviation Administration's first female engineer.
Katharine Stinson from Fuquay-Varina was the first female mechanical engineer to study at NC State and the first female engineer hired by the Federal Aviation Administration.
Problems playing video? | Closed Captioning Feedback
Problems playing video? | Closed Captioning Feedback
The Uncommon Story: Notable North Carolinians is a local public television program presented by PBS NC
This series was produced with support from the NC Department of Natural & Cultural Resources.
Katharine Stinson
3/28/2023 | 59sVideo has Closed Captions
Katharine Stinson from Fuquay-Varina was the first female mechanical engineer to study at NC State and the first female engineer hired by the Federal Aviation Administration.
Problems playing video? | Closed Captioning Feedback
How to Watch The Uncommon Story: Notable North Carolinians
The Uncommon Story: Notable North Carolinians is available to stream on pbs.org and the free PBS App, available on iPhone, Apple TV, Android TV, Android smartphones, Amazon Fire TV, Amazon Fire Tablet, Roku, Samsung Smart TV, and Vizio.
Providing Support for PBS.org
Learn Moreabout PBS online sponsorship[upbeat jingle] - [Narrator] What does Stinson Drive in the heart of NC State's campus have to do with the aviation industry?
Fuquay-Varina's Katherine Stinson became the very first woman to enroll in the Mechanical Engineering program at NC State.
She wanted to be a pilot, but when she met Amelia Earhart, the famous aviator told her, "Don't become a pilot, become an engineer."
So she did.
She became the first female engineer hired by the Federal Aviation Administration.
In 1943, she test flew a new aircraft which had caused multiple fatalities.
The wings vibrated like harp strings.
But when asked if she was afraid, she said, "Of course not.
We had parachutes."
[propeller whirring] Her FAA standards helped create the supersonic Concorde, which travels twice the speed of sound.
Support for PBS provided by:
The Uncommon Story: Notable North Carolinians is a local public television program presented by PBS NC
This series was produced with support from the NC Department of Natural & Cultural Resources.