On this day - 24 May

Amy Johnson was born in 1903 and was a pilot. She was the first woman to fly from England to Australia. She left from Croydon on May 5th and landed in Darwin on May 24th 1930. Following this feat, she continued to achieve records, both alone and with her husband Jim Mollison.

She died in 1941. The circumstances were unclear on her cause of death and her body was never recovered. She had been flying and ran low on fuel in adverse weather conditions leading to her bailing from her aircraft in the Thames estuary. It has been said this was the result of friendly fire or that she was sucked into the propellers of a rescue ship.