Tribute to Amy Johnson

Amy alongside her Gypsy Moth aircraft 'Jason'

Back in the 1960’s, my grandmother used to regularly sing to me the song ‘Amy Wonderful Amy’ at the top of her voice and I would join in enthusiastically. She would tell me the story of this petite shy girl from Hull who became a world famous aviator who flew all the way to Australia. Amy Johnson was one of the most remarkable women of the twentieth century. Her adventurous spirit captured my imagination as it did a whole generation and continues to do so. Courageous, extremely ambitious, and ready for a challenge, Amy laid the foundation for future record attempts. With determination she showed it could be done when in the 1930’s it was a male dominated world. A wonderful role model, Amy inspired women to pursue careers that were difficult or unheard of to enter. Her exploits were not mere record breaking gimmicks but a major contribution to establishing passenger air routes all over the world. Amy helped set the pattern for the way we live today.

Here are Amy’s most significant achievements –

5th-24th May 1930 Solo flight from Croydon, England to Australia. It had taken Amy nineteen and a half days, time in the air totalling 126 hours. The route took Amy across 11,000 miles of ocean, jungle and desert to land at Darwin, Australia.

Amy's route from England to Australia in 1930 

28th July – 9th September 1931 UK to Tokyo, Japan setting new record of eight days, twenty-two hours, outward bound. This also was the first direct flight from UK to Japan. During this flight, the 1,760 mile distance to Moscow was made in a single day as it took approximately twenty-one hours – another first!

14th November – 18th December 1932 Solo flight from UK to Cape Town, South Africa, return. Both directions by the Sahara / West Coast of Africa route covering 12,560 miles.

On outward journey, broke record held by her husband, Jim Mollison, as achieved in four days, seven hours plus record time for the complete flight which gained Amy the Seagrave Trophy.

22nd – 23rd July 1933 UK to USA (New York) with husband Jim. First direct, non-stop flight from the UK to USA, time taken thirty-nine hours.

20th – 21st October 1934 UK to India in record time of twenty-two hours as co-pilot/navigator with her husband.

4th – 7th May 1936 Solo flight, UK to Cape Town, return. Record breaking outward route, three days, six hours and also record for complete flight being eight days.

Amy’s brave brilliant career was all too brief. Lasting only eleven years from the time of her historic landing at Port Darwin, Australia in May 1930 to the bitterly cold day on 5th January 1941 when her aircraft was lost over the Thames Estuary. Amy would not wish to be remembered as a tragic heroine having endured treacherous terrain, difficult conditions and many personal ordeals. Flying was her life and she died doing what she loved. Amy had an immense belief in the future of flying and in an open letter to the people of Hull she declared her greatest wish was ‘That you all do as I do, take to the air’

When you think of Amy, remember her courage and optimism but most of all the message she brought across that no matter what obstacles come your way in life, follow your dream and do not give up.

Bronze statue of Amy located near St. George's Road, Hull where she was born

Digitised copies of 286 letters written by Amy between 1922 and 1928 mainly to her partner Hans Arregger, can be accessed via the History Centre’s web page: The Amy Johnson Letters.

For more information about the books and collections relating to Amy Johnson at the Hull History Centre download our Discovering Amy Johnson at the Hull History Centre leaflet.

Michele Beadle, Hull History Centre Assistant