Strother, Dora Jean Dougherty, 1921-2013

Dora Dougherty Strother McKeown; b. 27 Nov 1921, Saint Paul, Minnesota; d. 19 Nov 2013, Texas; husbands, Lester Strother and Harry McKeown; parents, Jonathan and Lucile Dougherty; accepted in the W.A.S.P. program during WWII, part of the class of 43-w-3; ferried planes, towed targets, and flew drones before she, along with Didi Moorman was asked by Col. Paul Tibbets to learn how to fly the B-29 bomber; went on to be part of the 509th Composite; received her AA from Cottey College, PhB from Northwestern, MS from University of Illinois and PhD from NYU; worked for Bell Helicopters from 1962 until 1986, set two world flight records for Rotorcraft in Altitude and distance from 1961 until 1966 when they were broken; was the 6th female in US to earn Airline Transport Certificate, 27th woman in the free world to earn a helicopter rating; after 20 years in the Air Force Reserve, she retired with the rank of Lt. Col from 9823rd Air Reserve Squadron, Ft. Worth, TX; was a licensed psychologist in the State of Texas; a founding fellow of the Human Factors Society of America; member of numerous psychology, aviation associations, and philanthropic organizations

Dr. Dora Jean Dougherty Strother (also known as Dora Dougherty McKeown and/or Dora Strother McKeown; b. November 27, 1921, St. Paul, MN – November 19, 2013); PhD in Aviation Education, NYU, 1955; recipient of the Amelia Earhart Award for academic achievement; inductee in the Military Aviation Hall of Fame; awarded the Achievement Award by the American Association of University Women, 1966; inductee to the Texas Women's Hall of Fame, 1987; was a Whirly-Girl, serving as President of the organization from 1979-1981; a member of the Ninety-Nines; earned her pilot certificate via the Civilian Pilot Training Program, sponsored by the Civil Aeronautics Authority, 1940; became the sixth woman in the United States to earn an airline transport pilot license; volunteered with WASP and was selected in the third class of WASP program (43-3); piloting jobs in the WASP program included flight training, target towing for antiaircraft gunnery, ferrying, and radio control piloting; In 1944, she and fellow WASP Dorothea Johnson Moorman were selected by Lt. Col. Paul W. Tibbets to learn to fly the Boeing B-29 Superfortress heavy bomber-engine plane; honorably discharged from the U.S. Air Force on December 20, 1944, having commanded 23 different aircraft; began work at the University of Illinois and taught flight courses; from 1944 to 1949, she worked in airfields across the United States, teaching pilots and ferrying aircraft; in 1958, Strother worked for Bell Aircraft as a human factors engineer, where she designed helicopter cockpits; developed expertise in helicopter flight and became a test pilot for Bell Helicopter company helicopter; held these rotorcraft records from 1961–66;
Following her retirement from Bell Helicopter as Chief of Human Factors Engineering and Cockpit Arrangement, she began serving as a member of the U.S. Army Science Board; elected as fellow in the American Psychological Association, the American Helicopter Society, and the Human Factors Society of America;