Sabiha Gökçen

Sabiha Gökçen was a brave pilot.

She was a child without parents. A leader named Atatürk adopted her. He helped her learn to fly.

She was the first woman to fly planes in war.

She flew for many hours. She even flew around the world.

She won many awards for her work. A large airport in a big city is named after her.

She is a very famous pilot.

Sabiha Gökçen was a famous Turkish pilot.

She was born in 1913. As a child, she was an orphan. A leader named Mustafa Kemal Atatürk adopted her. He gave her the family name Gökçen. In Turkish, this name means "belonging to the sky."

Sabiha loved the sky. She first saw planes at a flight school. She wanted to be a skydiver at first. But she found she loved flying planes even more. She earned her pilot's license and studied hard. She became the world's first female fighter pilot.

Sabiha flew many different planes. She flew for 32 military operations. She flew for about 8,000 hours. She even flew around the world for 28 years. She was a teacher for other female pilots, too.

A large airport in Istanbul is named after her. She died in 2001 on her 88th birthday.

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Sabiha Gökçen was a pioneering Turkish aviator who broke significant barriers in military history. She is recognized by the Guinness Book of World Records as the world's first female combat pilot. Throughout her long career, she flew approximately 8,000 hours. She also participated in 32 different military operations. Her legacy is so significant that the Sabiha Gökçen International Airport in Istanbul, the city's second-largest airport, is named in her honor.

Gökçen's journey began with a life-changing encounter in 1925. Born in 1913, she was an orphan living in difficult conditions. When Mustafa Kemal Atatürk visited Bursa, a twelve-year-old Sabiha asked to speak with him. She expressed a desire to attend a boarding school. Moved by her story, Atatürk adopted her. She moved to the Çankaya Presidential Residence in Ankara to live with Atatürk's other adoptive daughters, Zehra, Afet, and Rukiye.

In 1934, following the Surname Law, Atatürk gave her the name Gökçen. In Turkish, "Gök" means sky, and Gökçen means "belonging or relating to the sky."

Her passion for aviation developed shortly after receiving her new name. In 1935, Atatürk attended the opening of the Türkkuşu (Turkish Bird) Flight School. During an airshow featuring gliders and parachutists, Gökçen became very excited. When Atatürk asked if she wanted to be a skydiver, she eagerly agreed. Atatürk instructed the school head, Fuat Bulca, to enroll her as the first female trainee. While she initially intended to skydive, she found a deeper interest in flying aircraft. She eventually earned her pilot's license and traveled to the Soviet Union for advanced training in gliders and powered aircraft.

Because women were not typically accepted into Turkish War Academies at that time, Gökçen received specialized training. On Atatürk's orders, she was provided with a personalized uniform. She completed an eleven-month program at the Tayyare Mektebi (Aviation School) in Eskişehir during the 1936–1937 academic year. After receiving her flight patents, she spent six months training as a war pilot at the 1st Airplane Regiment. She gained experience flying both bomber and fighter planes. She also participated in the Aegean and Thrace exercises in 1937.

In 1937, Gökçen became the first Turkish female air force combat pilot during military operations in Dersim. During these operations, Turkish planes flew numerous sorties. A report from the General Staff noted the damage caused by a 50 kg bomb she dropped. Gökçen later recalled the intensity of these orders in a 1956 interview. For her performance, she was awarded a commendation and the Turkish Aeronautical Association's first "Murassa (Jeweled) Medal." In 1938, she completed a highly acclaimed five-day flight around the Balkan countries.

Following her combat service, Gökçen dedicated much of her life to teaching. In 1938, she was appointed chief trainer at the Türkkuşu Flight School. She served as a flight instructor and an executive board member until 1954. During this time, she trained four female aviators: Edibe Subaşı, Yıldız Uman, Sahavet Karapas, and Nezihe Viranyalı. Gökçen continued to fly around the world for 28 years, stopping only in 1964. Her life and connection to Atatürk were documented in her 1981 book, "A Life Along the Path of Atatürk."

Her life was also marked by a controversy regarding her ancestry. In 2004, a newspaper article suggested she was of Armenian descent. Some claims suggested she was born Hatun Sebilciyan and was adopted from an orphanage in Urfa. These claims were disputed by Turkish sources and by her adoptive sister, Ülkü Adatepe. A linguist who knew Gökçen claimed the stories were false. The debate became a significant social issue in Turkey. Gökçen died of heart failure on March 22, 2001, on her 88th birthday. Her contributions remain celebrated, including a Google Doodle in 2009 and recognition by the United States Air Force.