Two-day gathering planned for September 29-30, 2017

Women in Aviation International has announced this year’s Connect event in Dayton, Ohio, on September 29-30, 2017. The two-day, Friday and Saturday gathering will be held at the Marriott Hotel at the University of Dayton and begins with a tour of the Dayton Aviation Heritage National Historical Park sites, including Hawthorn Hill, the Wright family mansion; Carillon Historical Park; Wright-Dunbar Interpretive Center and the Wright Cycle Company; and the Huffman-Prairie Flying Field, the location of Wright Brothers’ test flights.

New member benefit

Women in Aviation International today announced a new member benefit. Avemco® Insurance Company now offers a 5% discount to all WAI members. This new member benefit is effective immediately in most states and will be a boost to the hundreds of WAI members who own and rent aircraft.

“With all of us trying to keep our flying affordable, this discount from Avemco® will help stretch our flying budgets a bit more,” says WAI President Dr. Peggy Chabrian. “We thank Avemco for recognizing our commitment to safety and partnering with us to provide this new benefit.”

March 2-4, 2017 marks 28 th annual Women in Aviation International Conference

With a little more than a week to go before the start of Women in Aviation International’s 28th Annual Conference, all systems are go for an exciting and action-filled event. This year’s conference is scheduled for March 2-4, 2017, at Disney’s Coronado Springs Resort in Lake Buena Vista, Florida.

“Every conference, we like to highlight our various activities ranging from our keynote speakers to our special luncheon and banquet events, in addition to dozens of education sessions,” says WAI President Dr. Peggy Chabrian. “This year we’ve organized our education sessions by relevant subject tracks to make it easier for our attendees of varying interests to plan their time and get the most information they can during the WAI Conference.”

Birthday to be marked with cake and cheers for pioneering pilot

The opening reception of Women in Aviation International’s 2017 annual conference will be turned into a 100th birthday party for WASP Dawn Seymour. Accompanied by her two daughters, Dawn will attend the 28th International Women in Aviation Conference to be held March 2-4, 2017, at Disney’s Coronado Springs Resort in Lake Buena Vista, Florida.

As a WASP, Dawn flew B-17s on training missions in Florida and New Mexico. Like other WASP, she completed her flight training in Sweetwater, Texas. Later, she was based at Buckingham Air Force Base in Florida, flying daily missions in the B-17 to train gunners. She was also based in Roswell, New Mexico. Dawn estimates that she flew 700 hours in the B-17.