Foil: 24 Panel: 2 Column: 1 Line: 4

Wall of Honor Level:
Air and Space Sponsor

Honored by:
Mr. John Dill

Abbie Dill Haddaway was born Abbie Putnam Dill in Washington D.C. on July 6,1911. She soon moved with her family to Lakewood, Ohio, a suburb of Cleveland.
Abbie learned to fly while a young high school student and received her pilot's license in 1930 from Dungan Airways. She became the youngest women in Ohio to make a parachute jump from an airplane at the age of 17.
After graduation from high school Abbie flew aerobatics in several local air shows where she met and befriended Amelia Earhart. She assisted Earhart in organizing the 99's, an international organization of women pilots. In 1935 Abbie worked with the National Aeronautics Assn. of Washington D.C. organizing 99's chapters in several Ohio cities including Cleveland, Mansfield, Wooster, Findley and Akron.
In 1937 Abbie flew in a closed course race in the National Air Races representing the Taylor Craft Company and won the Woman's C.G. Taylor trophy. That same year she flew to Miami Air Maneuvers and entered the Bernard MacFadden Race from Tampa to Miami and won the woman's trophy. On this trip she met her husband-to-be, George Haddaway, editor and publisher of Southern Flight Magazine of Ft. Worth, Texas, later to become Flight Magazine in Dallas. They were married en-route to Texas. After the birth of their daughter Gail in 1940 she curtailed much of her flying to be a mother. However, during WWII Abbie became the first woman air traffic controller in the 4th Region of the Civil Aeronautics Administration and she was assigned to the Albuquerque Center before returning to Dallas' Love Field. She remained there until the end of WWII.
In 1946 she arranged five aerocades throughout the state of Texas and was Assistant Director of the Aviation Exhibition held in Ft. Worth.
In 1960, after many years promoting aviation in many capacities in New York State, where she had moved in 1952, Abbie went on to California to pursue the growing aviation industry on the West coast. She helped organize the Outstanding Pioneer Woman's Award of the Silver Wings Fraternity of early flyers.