Miss Smaranda Brăescu: The Pilot Women
Romania’s Queen of the Heights. A true story.
A film by Ligia Ciornei
Synopsis
A determined woman defies the gender barriers of her time to become Romania’s first licensed woman parachutist, then travels to America, where she breaks the world record and becomes an international aviation icon.
Details
- Status
- In development
- Film by
- Ligia Ciornei
About the Film
The true story
Smaranda Brăescu
Born in 1897, Smaranda Brăescu made her first parachute jump in Germany on July 5, 1928, and became the first Romanian woman to hold a parachuting license. She was badly injured in a jump near Satu Mare in 1930, then set a women’s world record for the highest parachute jump in 1931 and, on May 19, 1932, over Sacramento, California, the absolute world record. The same year she earned a private pilot’s license in the United States. She became known as the Queen of the Heights.
Legacy
A street in Bucharest and the 53rd Commando Battalion of Romania’s Special Operations Forces bear her name, and a 2021 Romanian stamp shows her.
Gallery
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Colorized archival photo
Credits
A film by Ligia Ciornei.
