Remembering the Legacy of Gene Nora Jessen

The acclaimed pilot was a member of the experimental 'Mercury 13' program that laid groundwork for U.S. women to become astronauts.

Tuesday, May 28, 2024 at 03:09 PM ET

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Gene Nora Jessen in college at the University of Oklahoma, circa 1958. [Courtesy: Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum]

Key Takeaways:

Gene Nora Jessen, an acclaimed pilot, instructor, and author who passed away on May 21 at 87, was a pioneering member of the "Mercury 13" program, which laid essential groundwork for women to become astronauts.
She was the first woman flight instructor at the University of Oklahoma and gained prominence as a sales demonstration pilot for Beech Aircraft, including as one of the "Three Musketeers."
Jessen was a dedicated advocate for aviation and women pilots, serving as President of The Ninety-Nines and authoring several books chronicling the history and accomplishments of early women aviators.

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Gene Nora Jessen—an acclaimed pilot, instructor, author, and member of an elite group of women pilots selected for a research program later dubbed “Mercury 13” that set the groundwork for American women to become astronauts—passed away May 21. She was 87.

Jessen was born in 1937 and raised in Chicago. As a teenager she joined the Civil Air Patrol, where she had her first opportunity to fly an airplane. Her interest in aviation continued at University of Oklahoma (OU) where she joined the school’s flight club, known as the Air Knockers. She was a skilled pilot and earned several flight trophies. She also became the first woman to work as a flight instructor at OU.

Meg Godlewski

Meg Godlewski has been an aviation journalist for more than 24 years and a CFI for more than 20 years. If she is not flying or teaching aviation, she is writing about it. Meg is a founding member of the Pilot Proficiency Center at EAA AirVenture and excels at the application of simulation technology to flatten the learning curve. Follow Meg on Twitter @2Lewski.