When Jerrie Mock returned to Port Columbus International Airport in Ohio on April 17, 1964, to successfully complete her world-circumnavigation flight, she became the first woman to fly solo around the globe. While technically she was the only person on board, throughout the flight she was not alone. Right there with her, pushing onward with every nautical mile, was Jerrie’s essentially stock 1953 Cessna 180 Skywagon, christened Spirit of Columbus, after Jerrie’s home town. To the FAA, the airplane was known as N1538C, but to Jerrie it was “Charlie”—her nickname for her faithful airplane— which needs to be given an equal amount of credit for the flight.
From a distance, Charlie looks like every other Skywagon. Look inside the cabin, and you’ll see that it was stuffed with giant aluminum fuel tanks, with nothing but a tiny space for the left seat being all that remained of the stock interior. Jerrie had upgraded the panel to include the latest long-range radio equipment that was available in 1964; however, beyond the modifications to make the flight, Charlie was just a tough and dependable airplane with enough useful load to tanker the fuel required to fly extremely long legs over angry oceans.
