Was Amy Johnson "Foolhardy & Selfish" ?
Amy Johnson is fondly remembered as a pioneering aviator and a glamorous feminist icon after becoming the first female pilot to fly solo from Britain to Australia, aged just 26.
However, documents released by the National Archives last week, coinciding with the 75th anniversary of her historic flight, reveal that Johnson was actually perceived in a less than favourable light by high ranking Government officials.
The papers detail Johnson's frantic preparation for her controversial journey down under in 1930. She was described as "foolhardy" and "purely selfish" in documents from the Air Ministry and British Consular in stark contrast to her image of a pioneering pilot and media darling.
Documents also reveal that less than a month before she took off from Croydon Airport, Johnson had yet to secure an aircraft. And when she did finally take off, she failed to take with her radio equipment or cameras, but packed a pistol and 100 rounds of ammunition for use in emergency.