Ida Van Smith Passes It On

February 15, 2006 The International Women’s Air and Space Museum opened an exhibit honoring African-American pilot and teacher Ida Van Smith. Smith was a fifty year old mother and teacher when she took her first flying lesson. In 1967 she opened the Ida Van Smith Flight Clubs, teaching children from ages three to nineteen about flight and careers in aviation. Smith’s graduates went on to be Air Force and Navy pilots and fly planes for airlines. To learn more about Ida Van Smith and the International Women’s Air and Space Museum visit http://iwasm.org/wp-blog/