The Jerrie Mock Story

by Nancy Roe Pimm

  JERRIE IS GREETED BY JOHN TINKER FROM THE U.S. EMBASSY AND HIS WIFE, ADELAIDE TINKER, UPON ARRIVING IN KARACHI, PAKISTAN

  U.S. government photo

  That evening, Jerrie enjoyed an appetizer of caviar (fish eggs), followed by a steak dinner. After dark, her host invited her up on the rooftop, to a small observatory and a music room. As local stringed instruments played, Jerrie looked through a telescope at a sky full of stars sparkling brightly in the desert sky. While on the rooftop, they discussed Joan Merriam Smith. Pakistan was the only point where the two pilots’ routes had crossed, and the Tinkers had planned on asking Joan to stay with them when she arrived. They had learned that she was thought to be in Africa, and should be landing in Karachi in a couple of days. Jerrie did the math in her head. Joan had left two days before she did, but Joan’s trip ended in California, not in Ohio. Once Jerrie landed in America, she had a lot of land to cover to get back to the Buckeye State. Jerrie knew one thing and one thing for sure. She needed to leave for Delhi, India, first thing in the morning!

  Early the next day, Jerrie was greeted at the Karachi airport by Shukria Ali, Pakistan’s most famous woman flyer. Shukria arrived wearing silk pants and a brightly colored top. Jerrie admired the trousers, and hoped the style would catch on in America, so she would no longer have to deal with skirts and stockings. Fair weather was predicted for the next leg of her trip. Shukria and Adelaide gave Jerrie some last-minute preflight instructions. Jerrie listened, amazed at how she had just left Saudi Arabia, a country in which women weren’t permitted to drive, and, after only seven-and-a-half hours of flying, had arrived in Pakistan, where women wore trousers and flew planes! Just before her departure, Jerrie was given a small brass dinner-gong as a gift, so she would always remember her days in Pakistan.

  Jerrie took off for India on April 5, the day before Joan Merriam Smith was scheduled to land at the Karachi airport. Back in Ohio, Jerrie had tried to prepare for her visit to India by learning to speak the language. She had asked some Indian students from the Ohio State University if they could teach her. They looked amused and said, “Okay, which one of the forty dialects would you like to study first?”2 They added that the common language of the country is English, so that people from different regions could talk to each other.

  After a four-and-a-half-hour flight through beautiful blue skies, Jerrie Mock landed at Palam Airport in Delhi. Newsmen asked the usual questions and well-wishers wanted to take photos with the woman pilot. Jerrie answered their questions and posed for pictures. S. C. Sen, a member of the Aero Club of India, welcomed Jerrie. He had met Amelia Earhart in 1937 when she stopped at Delhi during her attempt to fly around the world. The Cessna dealer, K. M. Raha, who had worked on Amelia’s airplane, also greeted Jerrie when she landed.

  Colonel G. V. Raja and his ten-year-old son offered to take Jerrie sightseeing in Delhi. Before the outing, Jerrie tried to send a cable home, but first she needed to find money to pay for it. “I got out my billfold to see what cash I had. Lots of American dollars, some pounds and shillings from Bermuda, some Portuguese escudos, some Egyptian pounds, and a few Pakistani rupees. But the man wanted Indian rupees. I didn’t have any of those.”3 Colonel Raja offered to pay for the cable, but Jerrie wasn’t sure how she could repay him. She decided not to send the cable and left for her tour of the city.

  ADELAIDE TINKER’S LETTER TO RUSSELL, IN WHICH SHE WROTE OF JERRIE, “YOU CAN BE VERY PROUD OF HER FOR DOING A REALLY PROFESSIONAL JOB AS A FLIER, BEING CHARMING AND FEMININE (AS EXPECTED BY THE MALES), AND SAYING THE RIGHT THINGS TO THE RIGHT PEOPLE”

  Susan Reid collection

  The first stop was Jantar Mantar, an astronomical observatory consisting of a group of massive pink-and-white concrete structures built in 1724. Its tallest sundial stands fifty feet in height and gives the local time, while the remaining sundials tell the time from locations in other parts of the world. From there, they went to Qutab Minar, an ornate tower of red sandstone and marble. It was called the “Victory Tower” since it was built to celebrate the Muslim defeat of Delhi’s last Hindu kingdom. Jerrie and the Rajas also viewed the Iron Pillar, a pure iron shaft about twenty feet high. In its fifteen hundred years, the tower showed no sign of rust. One emperor had the Iron Pillar taken down to see why it didn’t rust, but the mystery remained. Originally the pillar had swayed, and the Hindus called it dilli, meaning “it wobbled.” Later it was firmly secured in the courtyard. Teenagers could be seen standing with their backs to the Iron Pillar while wrapping their arms around it because, legend had it, if their fingers touched they would have good luck. (Today, a protective barrier keeps tourists and teenagers at a distance.)

  The tour ended at the Tomb of Humayun, built by the first wife of Mughal Emperor Humayun, Hamida Banu Begum. She started the project in 1565; it was completed in 1572.

  When the sun had set that evening, the Aero Club of India held a festive party on the terrace under the stars. Jerrie enjoyed the delicious food and the people she met. One man from the press handed Jerrie a cable that read: “Please report on the sad progress of Joan Merriam Smith.”4 Jerrie had to disappoint the gentleman, because the truth was she had no idea where Joan was.

  THE POSTCARD THAT JERRIE SENT TO RUSSELL WHILE SHE WAS IN DELHI, INDIA

  Susan Reid collection

  Following the reception, Jerrie was invited to the home of Colonel Raja for some authentic Indian food and hospitality. As it was customary in India for multigenerational families to live together, at Colonel Raja’s home, Jerrie met his mom, dad, aunts, uncles, sisters, and cousins. There was room for everyone and they all got along with each other. Jerrie joined in a feast of curries and other Indian foods. The Raja family smiled as they watched the stranger try all their traditional dishes. Jerrie wished she could stay longer in the home of this friendly, happy clan, but she needed to get back in her plane—the sooner, the better. She needed to stay ahead of Joan Merriam Smith.

  DID YOU KNOW?

  The buses in Karachi did not stop. They merely slowed down for passengers to jump on and off. If a jump was poorly timed, it could result in many broken bones!

  FLIGHT NINE

  THAILAND AND THE PHILIPPINES

  TELEGRAMS FROM Russell Mock poured into the embassy; all with the same message: “Hurry home.” Russ urged Jerrie to chase after her place in the history books, and neglected to inform her that Joan Merriam Smith had been held up. Due to bad weather and a revolution in Brazil, Joan could not leave that country for five days.

  Jerrie boarded her plane and set out for Calcutta. She had hoped that soon after takeoff she might get a glimpse of the world famous Taj Mahal, but the beautiful tomb was in a closed air space in which she was not allowed to fly. After about a five-and-a-half-hour flight, she touched down on the runway of the Dum Dum Airport. She was still in the country of India, but she felt as if she had landed in another world. After leaving behind the pleasant weather of Delhi, Calcutta felt like a piping-hot steam room. By the time she reached the terminal, the thick air had Jerrie drenched in sweat. The overwhelming heat made her feel ill as she posed for pictures. All she wanted was a cold drink and a shower.

  After all the photos were taken and the paperwork was filled out, some members of the Aero Club invited Jerrie to a gathering. While everyone else sipped hot tea on the torrid day, Jerrie requested a cold cup of tea. As she sipped her beverage, her hosts wanted to talk about Joan Merriam Smith and her whereabouts. Rumors had floated about that Joan was having mechanical problems and weather difficulties. Given that information, Jerrie realized that Joan was not going to get to Pakistan as soon as she had hoped.

  While the others discussed Joan’s mechanical problems, Jerrie worried about her own. Charlie still needed its brakes repaired, but because a plane lands against the wind, and Charlie was a light plane, it slowed down naturally along the runway. What she needed most was a motor for the radio’s long-distance antenna, but none were available.

  Jerrie went to the Lalit Great East
ern Hotel to relax in an air-conditioned room. An American woman named Mrs. Roy stopped by, along with her daughter-in-law and grandchildren, to escort Jerrie on a shopping trip among the local bazaars. Jerrie admired the colorful saris worn by the women. After purchasing some jewelry and a sari of her own, Jerrie returned to her room and collapsed. Her 3:30 a.m. wake-up call came all too soon.

  Jerrie was driven to the Dum Dum Airport so she could leave Delhi and head to Bangkok, Thailand. At such an early hour, Jerrie expected the rest of the population of Calcutta to be sound asleep, but she never expected to see so many sleeping in the streets. She recalls, “Sleeping all over the place! Hundreds of them. Whole families were stretched out side by side, for block after block, on the sidewalks. In some places they were wedged so close together I doubt they could move without waking those on either side.”1 Entire families filled streets, without a home, and without hope. Some awoke from their slumber and washed in the public water fountains. The helplessness of the men, women, and children upset Jerrie. It saddened her, and the sadness was life-changing.2 Jerrie had never known such poverty existed, and, from that moment on, she knew that she would always be a more compassionate person.

  TELEGRAM FROM RUSS TO JERRIE IN BANGKOK, URGING HER TO HURRY TO FINISH AHEAD OF JOAN MERRIAM SMITH

  Susan Reid collection

  Once in the air, Jerrie crossed into East Pakistan, leaving behind a view of rice paddies. She flew over a leafy jungle canopy, and on to the Bay of Bengal, known for its fierce weather. But the day was calm, with blue skies and puffy clouds. After flying over mile after mile of jungles, Bangkok finally came into sight. As she set Charlie’s wheels onto the tarmac of the Don Mueang International Airport, she realized the farther south she flew, the more oppressive the heat became. Once again, she arrived drenched in sweat, and with a mighty thirst. All she could think of was soaking in a cool tub of water. Jerrie could hardly hide her disappointment when she learned that Bangkok’s water supply was turned off during shortages and this happened to be one of those times!

  Jerrie finally broke away from customs, fees, and paperwork by late afternoon. Before leaving the airport, she had the airplane refueled. An English-speaking couple, Mr. and Mrs. Bundit Watanasupt, introduced themselves and offered to take her around Bangkok. They took her to the beautiful parks and the bustling city. She had hoped to see the Buddhist temples of Old Siam, but the attraction was shut down for the night. The Watanasupts treated Jerrie to dinner. Jerrie was thankful that she had learned to eat with chopsticks before leaving Ohio. They ate exotic dishes such as shark’s fin soup and abalone stew. It was one of the most interesting and delicious meals she had ever eaten.

  After dinner, she returned to the Plaza Hotel to a room with a faulty air-conditioning system. She had difficulty sleeping in the muggy room. She awoke to a loud banging on the door at 3:30 in the morning. She wished the noise would stop, but then she remembered that she had requested an early wake-up call due to the 1,300-mile flight ahead of her. The best and most direct route to the Philippines took her south of Cambodia, east towards Saigon, then across the South China Sea. After a weather briefing, she went through customs and immigration, and took off for Manila by eight o’clock, leaving the Don Mueang Airport behind. She flew past Cambodia and over Vietnam. She knew that down below a war raged, but from the skies above the jungle canopy, all looked quiet and undisturbed.

  Jerrie took out a food bar and had a sip of water. She wished she could have had the long-distance radio repaired before journeying across nine hundred miles of the South China Sea. She watched cloud formations as she flew, becoming so familiar with all their variations that she could now predict headwinds and other weather conditions. She decided to take the time to write some letters, but stopped when she heard a strange noise. Charlie’s motor no longer purred. It sounded rough. Could sand from the storm have found its way into the engine? Sweat beaded up on her forehead as she pulled on the carburetor heat to allow more air into the engine. With the increase of airflow, the engine smoothed out. Charlie ran better for a few hours, but with the carburetor heat on, the engine used more gas. The strong headwinds also made the gas consumption greater than she had figured. Jerrie made some mathematical calculations and discovered that she would run out of fuel unless she transferred the fuel in the cabin tank to the right wing tank. Relocating fuel midair was risky. The interruption of gas could stall the plane, and the last thing she wanted was to stall while flying over the South China Sea.

  Jerrie’s hands shook as she turned on the transfer pumps, letting the gas flow from the cabin tanks to the right wing tank. She wiped the sweat from her brow. Charlie’s engine sputtered, then it purred, but then it sputtered again. The plane hesitated. Charlie’s nose dropped. Without the sound of an engine, all went silent except for the beating of Jerrie’s heart. It thumped in her chest as she took a deep breath, waiting for the gas to flow to the wing. Finally, the transfer was complete. She turned off the pump. Charlie’s engine hummed once again, along with the beating of Jerrie’s heart.

  With the crisis over, Jerrie took a deep breath and plopped down on the pillow, utterly exhausted. It had been ten hours since she left India. She looked out into the darkness. There was not a star in the sky, and no sign of the moon. Jerrie prayed, over and over again. Thirsty, but nearly out of water, she worried about drinking what she had, in case she found herself in a life raft drifting for days. She heard a faint noise over the short-range radio, and, less than an hour later, she was finally over land. Soon she would be in Manila.

  Greeted by clapping and cheers, Jerrie got out of her plane. Many in the crowd had speculated that her flight over the ocean had ended in disaster since her landing was so far behind schedule. She posed for photos and signed autographs. Reporters and journalists came around and asked her lots and lots of questions.

  “Mrs. Mock, what do you think happened to Amelia Earhart?

  “Mrs. Mock, do you think you will disappear in the ocean the same way Amelia Earhart did?”

  “But Mrs. Mock, your plane is so small. Smaller than Miss Earhart’s.”3

  Jerrie did not want to even think about the disappearance of Amelia Earhart or her recent fear over the dark ocean waters. Despite her troubles, she had total confidence in Charlie, and she preferred to think positively. She sat down with the reporters and assured them that she was not worried. She believed in her plane, and she planned to fly around the world, so that’s what she was going to do.

  JERRIE’S PASSPORT WITH VISA STAMPS FROM THE UNITED ARAB REPUBLIC AND THE PHILIPPINES

  Susan Reid collection

  Terry Bernadino and her father, Dr. Emiliano C. Ramirez, stopped by and introduced themselves as friends of Jerrie’s sister Barbara and alumni of the Ohio State University. They offered to drive Jerrie to the hotel. The reporters ignored the interruption, followed the car to the hotel, and continued their questioning in the hotel lobby.

  The next day, April 9, was a national holiday in the Philippines: Bataan Day. There was a Cessna service shop in Manila, but it would be closed all day. Jerrie was told the parts she needed had arrived, but she would have to wait until the following morning for the long-distance radio and the brakes to be repaired. Jerrie realized there was nothing she could do to change things so she went to a beauty shop and enjoyed a lakeside lunch in a lovely lodge in the mountains.

  JERRIE ENJOYS THE HOLIDAY OF BATAAN DAY IN THE COUNTRYSIDE OF MANILA

  Courtesy of Phoenix Graphix

  JERRIE RELAXES IN A BEAUTY PARLOR IN MANILA

  Courtesy of Phoenix Graphix

  The following day she ate at a country club while watching golfers through a window. It felt very much like home. After lunch, she checked on Charlie. All the repairs had been made, but her belongings were scattered all over the ground. Jerrie began the daunting task of squeezing maps, spare parts, emergency equipment, and the rest of her supplies back into the tiny plane. With half of her belongings still on the ground, Jerrie was told that Russ was
on the phone. She stopped what she was doing, and answered the call. Russ was upset she was still in Manila and he insisted that she needed to leave immediately. Jerrie tried to explain about the holiday, Charlie’s repairs, and her total exhaustion. Russ kept insisting that she leave since Joan could still beat her. As they continued to argue, the operator came on and the connection went bad. Jerrie slammed down the receiver. “I wished I couldn’t hear him. What a stupid conversation. I stamped my foot at the phone, the operator, and Russ. Oh, well, even if he could hear me, it probably wouldn’t matter. He just wanted a ‘first.’ Not me.”4

  Western Union Telegram

  April 11, 1964

  —Apparently you couldn’t hear. Hope you still plan to depart immediately or during the day. Smith in Bangkok. Described direct Lubon Guam to pick up time. You can win if you don’t spend two days anywhere. Can you take it only day and a half in Honolulu. Don’t forget you need 2,500 miles stateside. She doesn’t. Russ5

  DID YOU KNOW?

  A sari is made of silk or cotton and is draped around the waist and over one shoulder. In the Hindu tradition, girls begin to wear saris at age twelve, and continue to wear them for the rest of their lives. The men wear dhotis, a white cloth draped around their waists and legs.

  FLIGHT TEN

  GUAM, WAKE ISLAND, AND HAWAII