Gabriella (Gaby) Angelini | |
Birth Date: | 1911 |
Birth Place: | Milan, Italy |
Death Date: | December 3, 1932 |
Death Place: | Libya |
Occupation: | Aviator |
Notable Works: | First Italian woman to complete a trans-European flight |
Gabriella (Gaby) Angelini (1911 - 3 December 1932) was an Italian aviator.[1]
Angelini was born in Milan to a wealthy family. She earned her pilot's license at the age of 19, and quickly became a popular figure in Italy.[2] She was the first Italian woman to complete a trans-European flight, travelling to eight European countries, for which she received a Golden Eagle Medal. In 1932 she left Italy on a solo flight to Delhi, India, travelling in a Breda Ba.15 aeroplane. Angelini encountered difficulties during a sandstorm in Libya en route, and crashed in the desert and died.[3] More than 120,000 people attended her funeral in Milan.[4]
In 2014, a book by Rosellina Piano was published about Angelini's life, titled La Leggenda di Little Gaby (The Legend of Little Gaby).[5]