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The Deborah Lawrie Flyover, which passes over Sir Reginald Ansett Drive at Sydney Airport, was named in Deb’s honour in 2023. (Sydney Airport)
Fighting to fly: how Deb Lawrie made aviation history
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In 1980, Deborah Lawrie entered the halls of aviation legends by becoming Australia’s first female commercial airline pilot following a four-year battle with Ansett. Now, more than 45 years on, she is the world’s oldest female commercial pilot and spoke to Australian Aviation following the release of a memoir looking back on her trailblazing career.
AA: What sparked your dream of becoming a commercial airline pilot?
Deborah Lawrie: It was never a dream right from the beginning – I sort of stumbled into flying because my father was following a passion of his, to learn to fly. He always wanted to do that as a young boy, and he wasn’t able to until later in life. So, I was about 14 years old, and I used to sit around with him, look at his books, help him with checklists, and go with him to Moorabbin Airport. And I became interested in aviation because of him. And then I was allowed to sit in the back seat of the aeroplane a couple of times, and the instructor one day said to me, “Why don’t you learn to fly?” And I thought, “Well, yeah, I’ll do that”. And my father gave me a couple of lessons for my 16th birthday. And then after that, I had to do it myself. And initially, I wasn’t going to follow this pathway, but I needed to prove to him that I could go solo. And it was the day that I went solo that I caught the flying bug, as they call it.
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