Pancho: The biography of Florence Lowe Barnes

by Barbara H. Schultz

PANCHO: THE BIOGRAPHY OF FLORENCE LOWE BARNES details the life of one of Aviation's most colorful members. In the 1920's, Pancho Barnes barnstormed her way through the skies to become one of the best, capturing the women's speed record in 1930. The test pilots of Edwards Air Force Base designated Pancho's "Happy Bottom Riding Club" their unofficial debriefing room in the 1950s. Among those who respected Pancho, for both her character and her abilities, were Amelia Earhart, Louise Thaden, Chuck Yeager, and Jimmy Doolittle. Pancho was spontaneous, adventurous, and dedicated to both flying and friends. This well-written biography details the life of a remarkable woman.

Genres: Aviation

243 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1996

About the author

I have become a well-respected researcher in the field of aviation. My passion for research and continual search for the smallest of details to enhance my histories is evident in the finished products. I have traveled throughout the United States and Mexico to interview essential individuals to the projects. These interviews are the best part of my research. I have the opportunity to make new friends for which there is a reciprocation. Many of the 'old-timers' enjoy reliving their past with someone who has a sincere interest in hearing their stories. It's a "win-win" for both!

Not only have I completed research for books, but I have contributed articles to the American Aviation Historical Society journal as well. Some factual narrations do not warrant an entire book but their story must still be told. My journal articles include Elvy Kalep, Estonian's first aviatrix; Elizabeth Ulysses Grant McQueen, founder of the Women's International Aviation Association; James Granger, founder of the Pacific School of Aviation at Clover Field, Santa Monica, and just recently, High Flying Fashion! The Evolution of Flight Apparel for Pioneering Women Pilots.

Documentarians have requested my participation in their projects. This is truly an honor. Sharing what I know is what's important. Aviation documentaries I have been part of are Breaking Through the Clouds about the women's first National Air Race in 1929; The Happy Bottom Riding Club featuring the life of Pancho Barnes; and The Katherine Cheung Story. I am available for presentations on my books or articles. There is also the opportunity to ask for a custom presentation. Two that I have done are Aviatrixes in Los Angeles and the History of Women Aviators in Louisiana. Anyone interested may contact me through my email panchobook@msn.com

Graduate of USC; retired from Los Angeles Court School as an Administrator and Brandman University as an adjunct instructor in the Special Education Department.

I am a pilot and live with my husband on our airport - Little Buttes Antique Airpark near Lancaster, CA. Our house is part of our hanger which houses our Beech 18, Bonanza, Cessnas, and several projects.

Reviews

[Barbara · Rating 2 out of 5]

It is astounding how the author could reduce the life of this fascinating woman into such an ordinary and flawed book.

[Nancy H · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is quite an entertaining biography of an iconic figure in female aviation. I knew nothing about this aviatrix before a friend gave me this book, but I am so glad I read it and learned about a woman who was very important in early days of aviation. It was doubly interesting to me because my father, uncle, and great-uncle flew planes, and my aunt was in the Women's Air Corps on World War II, so I have heard quite a bit about early flying and war-time flying. My great-uncle owned an airport, but I don't know if Pancho Barnes would ever have come to central Pennsylvania and flown into or out of a small airport. Pancho was certainly a larger-than-life character who epitomized the independence, spunk, and spirit of women of her time.

[Bob Crawford · Rating 4 out of 5]

Florence “Pancho” Barnes was a legend around Southern California where I grew up, raised by a WWII Air Corps bombardier who loved airplanes. But the legend of Pancho really took off with Tom Wolfe’s “The Right Stuff” which took some dramatic license but increased her legend.
This book is as much about personality as it is about aviation. And Pancho Barnes was nothing, if not a unique, outrageous personality. But that personality has been enhanced by her close friendships with aviation legends and astronauts as portrayed in books and movies. Often lost, is that she was a legendary aviator herself.
I also learned a lot that I never knew about my home grounds in Southern California.
This author does a workmanlike job in telling the whole tale of a true original.

[Alethea Hammer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting book. I do recommend it. But it suffers from poor editing and worse proof reading. There are typos and misspellings and the chronology is a struggle to follow because it reads like a collection of anecdotes from different sources. Despite the difficulties it is interesting.

[Tanvi Prakash · Rating 5 out of 5]

She's my soul sister.

[Stefanie Costa Rica · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fastinating biography of a women who defied social norms of the day to become a pilot in the 1920s and later a business women running a successful aviators club near Edwards AFB.

[Jon_norstog · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think I've read all the biographies/books about her, including my Uncle Rolf's unpublished notes. Schultz's book is probably the most complete of the bios and is clearly written. Pancho was the real article and she comes across as both tough and loving in this book. She was also a creature of her time and place, living in the Hollywood social orbit of the 1930s as well as in the daredevil world of early aviation. That all comes out pretty well in Schultz's book. Barnes herself was not above improving her own story for effect.

If you want to learn about Pancho's sex life you won't find much to go on here. She claimed a lot of lovers, and really seemed to like men. Who knows? If you are working off source material, you won't get much of an idea, and the people you could interview are no longer available.

I wish I had gotten to know her.

[Lyndsay · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very good book on Pancho. I would like to read some of the other ones. She was an ecentric lady. Fun to read about.