Learning Center Our Enshrinees

Emily Howell Warner

• Worked as the receptionist at Stapleton Airport during the week and took flying lessons on her day off.
• Became a flight instructor in 1960 and was soon promoted to Flight School Manager and Chief Pilot.
• Applied to airlines for a pilot’s job, but even with her 7,000 hours, the industry was not ready.
• Designated an FAA Pilot Examiner in 1967.
• After hearing that Frontier announced a new hiring class, but she was not on the list, she marched into the Frontier office and landed an interview with the airlines’ Vice President of Flight Operations, Ed O’Neil. She was offered a job once she passed a simulator check-ride  (something that was quite challenging and not normally required).
• Made history in 1973 as the first female pilot hired by a major U.S. scheduled airline.
• First female pilot to join the Air Line Pilots Association in 1974.
• Became the first female captain on June 6, 1976 and commanded the first all-women flight crew in 1986.
• Retired from the FAA in 2002 as its Air Crew Program Manager for the United Airlines 737 fleet.
• Amassed over 21,000 flying hours in her 42 years as a pilot.