Sheila Christine Hopkins was born on April 27, 1927 in Worcester,
Worcestershire, England. After attending a Worcester boarding school, Sheila
became a nurse trainee at Haslar Naval Hospital where she tended the wounded during
WW-II. She married becoming Sheila Scott and early on she had a dream. She wanted
a grandstand seat in life to view the unfolding magical scene of endless changing
colors in the boundless sky. She became a pilot and chose to fly barefoot. The earth
was to become her paper and Myth her parable.
Any plane that she flew would have the name Myth attached to it. Eventually,
she purchased a Piper Comanche 260 and named it, "MythToo." Between 1965 and 1972
she would be breaking more than 100 light-aircraft records. In 1966 she and her
"Myth Too" would fly solo round-the-world in an easterly direction. She departed
London on May 19, 1966 and returned there on June 20, 1966 setting a new light
aircraft speed record for flying solo round-the-world.
She lamented, "each flight is a triumph, not only over machinery, weather and
terrain but over oneself."
In 1969/70 she would fly solo round-the-world for a second time in "Myth Too."
On December 20, 1969 she took off from Gatwick Airport in London in the "England to
Australia Air Race." Her "Myth Too" had been jinxed by someone and with severe
weather out of Singapore, she became lost but finally was able to land in Makassar,
Celebes Islands. She got back on course and after making the required Australian
landings, arrived in Sydney on January 3, 1970. She didn't win the race but was
awarded fourth in her class. Sheila commented, "I entered a race and had an
adventure." Sheila decided to continue flying east round-the-world in a relaxed
fashion. Her air tour took her over the Pacific to Los Angeles, CA, across the US to
New York City and then via Gander, Newfoundland across the Atlantic back to London.
In 1971 in her new Piper Astec plane, "Mythre" Sheila would fly solo
round-the-world for her third time but adding a flight over the North Pole in her
circumnavigation path. She casually flew south from London to Nairobi, Kenya so she
could begin her round the world flight south of the Equator. On June 11, 1971 it was
wheels-up for her third round-the-world flight. She returned to London and
continued north first to Bodo and then to Andoya, Norway. She flew to Nord,
Greenland where she would prepare for the her North Pole fly-over. "Mythre" was
outfitted with special navigational instrumentation so NASA could guide and verify
her flight path over the Pole using the American polar satellite, Nimbus. On June
28, 1971 she overflew the North Pole continuing on to Barrow, Alaska. From Alaska
she flew to San Francisco, CA crossing the Pacific to Honolulu, HI and re-crossed
the Equator on July 15, 1971 on her way south to Canton Island. She continued
westerly across Asia to Australia, the Mid-East and Europe arriving back at Heathrow
Airport in London on August 4, 1971. Sheila maintained a "sleep diary" so others
could better understand pilot sleep patterns for extended cross-continent
cross-ocean round-the-world flights.
She admitted that she had "fly-fever," an insatiable passion for the wilderness
above, "Up there I never feel alone as I may on the ground in a crowd." Sheila
became the first pilot, male or female, to fly directly over true North Pole in a
light aircraft and she did it while flying solo round-the-world. She was born to fly
and was one with her aircraft. Sheila was often alone but was never lonely. She
passed away quietly in London on October 20, 1988.
Itinerary
Departed Nairobi, Kenya 06/11/71
crossed the Equator north 06/11/71
Khartoum, Sudan
Bengazi, Libya
Malta
London, England 06/21/71
Bolo, Norway
Andoya, Norway
Nord, Greenland
over the North Pole 06/28/71
Barrow, Alaska
Fairbanks, Alaska
Anchorage, Alaska 07/03/71
San Francisco, CA
Honolulu, HI 07/15/71
crossed the Equator south 07/15/71
Canton Island
Nandi, Fiji 07/23/71
Noumea, New Caledonia
Townsville, Australia
Darwin, Australia 08/01/71
Singapore
Madras, India
Karachi, Pakistan
Bahrain
Athens, Greece
Arrived London, England 08/04/71