The Jerrie Mock Story

by Nancy Roe Pimm

  AT 3:30 a.m. Jerrie Mock rubbed her eyes and tried to focus on the job ahead of her. Even though she felt weary from waking at such an early hour, she prepared to travel to the island of Guam. Jerrie trudged down to the car and slept almost all the way to the airport. It was still dark when she arrived. She picked up her weather folder and her flight plan, and went to the Cessna shop to get Charlie. Jerrie needed to wait for the customs and immigration men before she could leave the country. The sun was coming up, and her impatience grew as she waited and waited to be cleared for takeoff. She walked out of the shop and paced beside Charlie. Reporters found her pacing, and they bombarded her with questions, the same old questions about Amelia Earhart. Exhausted and irritated, she felt like yelling at them. Instead, she walked back into the Cessna shop to get away from their annoying questions. Finally the airport men showed up with the necessary paperwork. Forms were signed; photos were taken. Jerrie said her good-byes and climbed aboard her plane.

  Charlie’s engine purred as it taxied down the runway with its new sand-free air filter. The airplane also sported new brakes, and a new motor for the long-distance radio. Jerrie smiled, excited at the thought of heading back to America, back to her family. Although Russ made her angry sometimes, she still missed him and the kids terribly. Her tiny plane lifted off the ground, up through the clouds, and past the golden sun. Jerrie marveled at “the phenomenal beauty that is God’s gift, each dawn, to pilots who venture eastward over oceans.”1

  Beneath puffy clouds, Jerrie flew over endless whitecaps in the ocean below. She felt admiration for Ferdinand Magellan as she crossed the Pacific. He had sailed across this ocean in 1521. By the time his crew had sighted land and arrived in Guam, they were nearly starved to death. Hundreds of years later, Jerrie was flying over the same ocean, heading for the same island. She too felt like an explorer, journeying into the unknown, over the expansive ocean waters.

  Eleven and a half hours later, Charlie’s wheels finally touched the ground at the Agaña Naval Air Station. Jerrie got out of the plane. Someone from the crowd shouted, “Welcome back to the United States!” Generals and admirals from the United States Air Force and Navy came to greet her, along with the governor of Guam. A United States Navy band played patriotic songs. Jerrie smiled, happy to feel so at home, even though her real home was still thousands of miles away.

  Jerrie attended a reception in her honor at the airport, and was invited by Governor Guerrero and his wife to stay at their mansion. They had hoped she could stay for a couple of days, but a report came in concerning Joan Merriam Smith. Joan was leaving Calcutta and headed for Thailand. She was only a couple of days behind Jerrie, and closing in. Russell Mock called and reminded Jerrie that she needed to press on if she wanted to ensure her place in the history books. After the long, lonely flight, Jerrie wanted nothing more than to rest, to swim, and to spend more time with all the wonderful people she had just met, but she knew in her heart she needed to keep moving. She freshened up, then gave a television interview. After an enjoyable dinner with the Guerrero family, she slept for four hours before receiving her 3:30 a.m. wake-up call.

  . . .

  GUAM

  GUAM IS an island in the western Pacific Ocean, and a territory of the United States of America. It is thirty miles long, and four to twelve miles wide. Ferdinand Magellan was the first European to discover the island during a Spanish Expedition on March 6, 1521. Guam was controlled by Spain until 1898, when it was surrendered to the United States during the Spanish-American War. During World War II, the Japanese captured the island soon after the bombing of Pearl Harbor. They occupied Guam until the United States fought to take it back near the end of the war. The Japanese held thousands captive at the Manenggon concentration camp, and brutal massacres were committed against the Chamorro, the people of the island. On July 21, 1944, a date now celebrated annually as Liberation Day, Guam was once again a territory of the United States of America and the people were freed. “Many of the survivors have forgiven, but they’ve not forgotten,” Angel Sablan, director of the Mayors Council of Guam says. “The Chamorro are loving, forgiving people. . . . It’s no longer a time to remember what happened then, it’s time to remember we are free now and we can look at our children and see smiles on their faces.”2

  GUAM

  Courtesy of mapsof.net

  . . .

  Before the break of dawn, Charlie raced down the runway and climbed back up in the air to begin the day trip to Wake Island. Jerrie reached her cruising altitude, leveled the plane, and set it on autopilot. After tidying up the plane, she sat back and enjoyed a breakfast bar and a drink of water. Then she got out her stationery and wrote letters to her family. In between writing, she watched the cloud formations and tried to avoid headwinds. The rain fell, forming rainbows below the clouds. Jerrie flew above the clouds and missed the showers, but the turbulence was so rough she banged her head. She quickly put her pen away and quit writing. The rough skies served as a reminder that many considered the trip to Wake Island the most dangerous leg of her flight around the world. There were no beacons in the ocean. She had to rely on her long-distance radio to guide her, with outbound beams from Guam, and inbound beams from Wake Island. Since Wake Island is only fifteen miles in diameter, flying just one degree off course would make her miss the island by thirty miles. Precision was everything.

  While she flew over the ocean, pilots talked to her over the radio. One pilot seemed amazed that she flew in a single-engine plane. He had said, “I wouldn’t fly across the bay in a little thing like that.”3 But Jerrie loved her little plane and wouldn’t have wanted to be in any other. She and Charlie were a team. She settled in for the long flight and found comfort in the sound of a beacon beeping from Wake Island. In the darkened skies, lights shone in the distance. Suddenly, a cloud engulfed her plane and she couldn’t see a thing. She called to the control tower, but she didn’t understand what they were saying. She dropped the plane below the clouds, and the runway lights at the airport shone like stars. A person in the control tower came back on the radio. She followed his instructions and turned for the runway, but the sky “seemed to explode with white fire.”4 Jerrie jumped at the sight. Was someone shooting at her? She knew she had obtained all the permissions to land. Why would anyone be shooting her out of the sky?

  She landed with a thud, happy to be out of the air and safe on the ground. Hundreds of people gathered around as she climbed out of her plane. She recalls, “A lei of seashells was thrown about my neck. I was kissed, ‘Aloha.’ Almost everyone took pictures and all the youngsters wanted autographs. I was overwhelmed.”5

  Hal Sellers of the Federal Aviation Administration assured Jerrie that no one had been shooting at her. A flare was launched to help her locate the airport amid the thick cloud cover. He offered Jerrie some food, and took her to a home in an FAA housing complex along the ocean. Soon she was fast asleep, lulled by the rhythmic pounding of the surf. The next morning, she awoke to the sound of the waves crashing against the shoreline. She pulled on a pair of slacks, and rushed out to see the island without even putting on her lipstick.

  Jerrie marveled at the sight of white sand surrounded by clear blue water. Huge waves beat against the coral reef and sprayed her. She looked across the road and noticed that seaplanes had landed overnight in the turquoise lagoon. Jerrie crossed the white coral road, sat down on a rock, and let the cool waters splash her feet. After enjoying the peaceful scenery, she went back inside and did some laundry.

  Hal Sellers picked Jerrie up and drove her to the airport to take care of her preflight needs. The weatherman at the airport suggested delaying her departure for Hawaii due to a squall line. He explained that if she left in the afternoon, she would be sure to run into a storm in the middle of the night. He advised her to leave that night, so she would hit the bad weather at dawn, when she could see to fly around it. Jerrie decided to take his advice and leave that evening, with hopes that she would have time to swim in the Pacific Ocean duri
ng the day. After getting her paperwork in order, she went to a luncheon party at the Wake Island Bowling Center. It was a fancy affair complete with china, sparkling glassware, and white linen tablecloths. After lunch, she went sightseeing around the island.

  After touring the island, Jerrie swam in a swimming hole in a sheltered lagoon, so there would be no chance of swimming with sharks.

  . . .

  WAKE ISLAND ALBATROSSES

  WAKE ISLAND is a bird sanctuary, and thousands of albatrosses, otherwise known as gooney birds, spend their winters on the island. When Jerrie was driving on the island, the birds had not yet left for their summer home, and were so plentiful that her car windows needed to be closed to keep them out. Fearlessly, the gooney birds landed on the hood and the top of the car.

  The birds are protected, but having so many of them in the area is a danger to airplanes, since they can be sucked into an airplane engine, causing it to stall. Jerrie couldn’t believe how they tumbled and fell with nearly every landing. The sight was comical. Not only did they have rough landings, but almost every takeoff was unsuccessful. The gooney birds would try again and again until they finally were airborne. Once in the air, the birds, with wingspans of up to eleven feet, flew more gracefully than any bird she had ever seen.

  A FLOCK OF ALBATROSSES, OR GOONEY BIRDS, WHICH WINTER ON WAKE ISLAND

  Courtesy of Phoenix Graphix

  . . .

  Before she left, Jerrie hoped to have her souvenir airmail covers stamped to prove she had been on Wake Island. Airmail covers were envelopes with commemorative markings that made great souvenirs. Each envelope had an Amelia Earhart airmail stamp, and the postmark, “Columbus, Ohio, March 19, 1964.” The problem was the post office closed in a half an hour. She had a thousand airmail covers, and they all needed to be addressed before the post office would cancel them with a stamp. Hal and Jerrie recruited the help of some FAA secretaries. Working as a team, they addressed envelopes, and had seven hundred covers stamped and mailed before closing time.

  About 8:00 that evening, Hal took Jerrie to a bowling alley to enjoy one of the best burgers on the island. Jerrie relished this taste of home, but it made her more than a little homesick. She missed her family terribly and wondered what they were doing. She couldn’t wait to see her boys and hug her little girl again. Before she and Hal left for the airport, the manager of the bowling alley came out with a care package consisting of a roast veal sandwich and an orange. Jerrie didn’t have much of an appetite. She kindly explained to the thoughtful man that she didn’t have room in her plane for such a big box of food, and she was afraid such a large sandwich might go to waste. The man seemed disappointed, but he put some of the food into a smaller box and Jerrie went on her way to Honolulu.

  Charlie’s wheels raced down the runway at 10:30 p.m. Soon the little plane was up in the air above the rolling ocean waves. The long-distance radio was quiet. The darkness and the hum of the plane’s engine made Jerrie’s eyes feel heavy. She was alone in the black night, but she was not lonely. She was thrilled to be flying over the ocean, with Charlie as her only companion. Seven hours later, when dawn broke, she welcomed the sight of the bright sunshine. Water streamed from the bottom of the clouds, and with the help of the sun, beautiful rainbows formed.

  Jerrie remembers, “That day I felt like a queen, or at least a fairy princess, monarch of all I surveyed. My subjects, the foamy clouds and glowing rainbows, put on a command performance just for me. It was worth all the hard work, worry, and the past few sleepless nights. After Christopher Columbus discovered America, he became the Admiral of the Ocean Seas. In my red-and-white Spirit of Columbus, for a few days I became the Queen of the Ocean Skies.”6

  The weather report had promised tailwinds to push her along in her upcoming flight, but Jerrie fought headwinds the entire trip to Honolulu. After spending nearly sixteen hours in the air, Jerrie had been awake for a full thirty hours. She approached the airport twelve miles south of course. Because of the clouds and mountains in the area, the air traffic controller recommended a radar landing, allowing them to direct her to the correct runway with the use of radar. Jerrie was worn out! She agreed, and after a smooth landing, she taxied to the terminal.

  A large crowd pushed up against the chain-link fence. When Charlie came to a stop, hundreds of people swarmed around the little plane. Jerrie stepped out and the immigration man looked over her paperwork. As soon as he was finished, leis of red and white flowers were put around Jerrie’s neck. The crowd shouted, “Aloha!”

  Jerrie was handed a telephone, and was surprised to hear the voice of her husband. She was annoyed at his ability to track her down, but, as all eyes were upon her, she smiled. Russ told her he had canceled all the receptions and parties that had been planned in her honor since he felt that she needed to get her rest more than anything else. Although his intentions were good, Jerrie was furious! She felt heat rise to her face. How could he do this to her? She never slept during the day. How could she sleep when there was a beautiful island to explore and so many wonderful people to meet? She told Russ, “But I’m not tired. Not now that I’m here. How could you ruin things before I even got here?”8 She hung up the phone. Although surrounded by beautiful scenery and friendly people, she felt all alone. There would be no parties. All the festivities had been canceled.

  . . .

  ALOHA

  THE WORD Aloha has a much deeper meaning than just hello or good-bye. It describes an attitude or “way of life,” a code of ethics taught to children. The code is derived from one of the acronyms of Aloha.

  A-ala, watchful, alertness

  L-lokahi, working with unity

  O-oia’I’o, truthful honesty

  H-ha’aha’a, humility

  A-ahonui, patient perseverance7

  . . .

  Jerrie was driven to a hotel and checked into a room with a balcony that overlooked a garden of flowers. Everyone kept telling her that no one would bother her, that she would be left alone. Not even phone calls would be allowed through. No one seemed to understand that she had been alone long enough. The requests they were following came from Russ, not her. But the decisions had been made and no one would listen to her.

  The sound of waves crashing onto the beach mingling with a melody and singing voices caught Jerrie’s attention. She stepped out onto the balcony of her room. It overlooked a garden of exotic flowers; their fragrance drifted up to the balcony. Two women stood among the flowers singing island songs while one of them played the guitar. The smell of the flowers and the sound of the beautiful voices enchanted Jerrie. Too excited to sleep, she left her room to explore the island on her own. After wandering aimlessly for hours in search of a beach, she gave up. Sightseeing without an escort proved pointless. Jerrie returned to her hotel and stopped at the restaurant for a meal of coconut chicken. The waiter frowned and glared as he served her. In 1964, it wasn’t considered appropriate for ladies to dine alone, and her waiter made sure to show his displeasure. Jerrie paid her bill, returned to her room, and was finally lulled to sleep by the sound of island music.

  The next morning Jerrie arose early and headed for the airport. She wished she could explore all of the Hawaiian Islands in her small plane, but she needed to keep one step ahead of Joan Merriam Smith. Joan had left Thailand and was in Singapore. Jerrie’s next stop was Oakland, on the United States mainland. Before departing, Jerrie called Russ to give him material for a news story. While she had him on the phone, Jerrie explained that she wasn’t being irresponsible and just having fun. She knew people were counting on her, and she didn’t want to let them down. But she also didn’t want to rush things to the point it could become dangerous, even life-threatening. With all their mis-communications out of the way, Russ promised to meet her at the airport in California. After the phone call, she went to get her plane ready for her longest flight yet—over seventeen hours from Honolulu to Oakland. Jerrie Mock left behind the white sandy beaches, turquoise waters, and swaying palm trees
of Hawaii, and pointed Charlie’s nose to the east, toward home.

  IN HONOLULU, JERRIE’S SMILE TURNS INTO A FROWN AS SHE LEARNS THAT RUSS HAS CANCELED ALL PARTIES AND CELEBRATIONS IN HER HONOR SO SHE COULD GET SOME REST

  Courtesy of Phoenix Graphix

  DID YOU KNOW?

  A legendary shark swims around Wake Island. His name is Mag-Check Charlie. He is a smart shark with good ears, who swims around the island, living off the remains of unlucky aviators. When a pilot takes his plane to the end of the runway to check the engine magnetos before takeoff, legend says that Mag-Check Charlie listens very carefully to see if the engine sounds rough. If he detects a rough magneto or other unusual sounds, he swims to the far end of the runway, waiting for his dinner.

  FLIGHT ELEVEN

  HOME!

  JERRIE FLEW most of the day, but she still needed to fly through the night. In order to prepare for an all-night flight, Jerrie had practiced staying awake all evening in a chair at home, but it never worked. She couldn’t reproduce the element of danger in her living room, and she always fell sound asleep. Now, as she flew over the whitecaps of the endless ocean, sleeping was not an option. She placed a mask over her nose and mouth to breathe in pure oxygen for ten minutes every hour. She also concentrated on the sound of the steady signal of the Consolan station. Thoughts of going home to see Russ and the kids kept her awake and excited, but she felt a little sadness on ending her adventure around the world.

  Thirty-eight nautical miles from the airport in California, Jerrie looked down at the Farrallon Islands, her first sight of land. Soon after, the Oakland International Airport came into view. Thrilled to be back in the States, she landed the plane hard and fast. Charlie hit the airstrip with a thud, and the little plane bounced down the runway. Jerrie felt a little embarrassed at such a rough landing in front of the large crowd, but her happy mood kept her from thinking about it for very long. As she rolled to the terminal, an enormous throng of people rushed to the plane. They shouted and waved their arms. She tried not to hit the hundreds of well-wishers swarming about Charlie. Her airplane rolled to a stop and Jerrie shut off the engine. Someone opened Charlie’s door. After so many hours of silence, the noise of the outside world came crashing in.