Before
Baumgartner was born in 1918 at a US Army Hospital while her father was stationed in France. Her inspiration to fly came when she met Amelia Earhart at her grade school. Baumgartner went to Newark Airport with her father to watch mail planes, furthering her desire to fly. While working in the Eastern Airlines public relations department, Baumgartner learned to fly at Somerset Hills Airport. |
During
Baumgartner was assigned to Camp Davis, NC as a tow pilot after completing her training. Baumgartner flew the Douglas A-24, Curtiss A-25, Lockheed B-34, Cessna UC-78 and Stinson L-5 while at Camp Davis. In 1944 Baumgartner was transferred to Wright Field to test aeromedical equipment designed for the WASP program. Originally her duties were primarily clerical but over time she was permitted to fly as a test pilot. When Baumgartner worked in the bomber flight test division for a short time, she gained pilot and copilot experience in the B-17, B-24, B-29. After being reassigned to the test division Baumgartner flew America's first jet aircraft, the Bell YP-59A. Her assignment at Wright Field ended when the WASP program was disbanded in 1944. |
After
Baumgartner married Major William Carl and together they sailed the Atlantic and cruised the Mediterranean, the British Isles, and the French Canals. She worked as a flight instructor, with United Airlines and at Zahn's Airport. Baumgartner's flight ratings included private, commercial, instrument, multi-engine, flight instruction and instrument. Later she became a journalist who specialized in science. She wrote two books A WASP among Eagles: a woman military test pilot in World War and "The Small World of Long Distance Sailors". Carl (married name) died at a nursing home in 2008. |