Felpham's newest blue plaque will honour the first woman to fly a Concorde

The plaque is set to be unveiled on March 8, 11am, at Felpham Sailing Club where, local historian and parish councillor Kevin Watson said, Barbara first nurtured her adventurous spirit.

Sailing with her father, she was a permanent fixture at the Felpham Sailing Club long before her rise to fame as the world’s first female Concorde pilot, he said, adding that the plaque’s is intended to pay tribute to her jet-setting spirit, her achievements as a pilot, and her love of the sea.

Despite soaring into the history books in 1993, as a pilot on the British Airways Concorde flight from London Heathrow to New York’s JFK Airport, Barbara learned to fly somewhat locally – in Shoreham - and, once qualified, became a flying instructor with the Goodwood Flying School. There, she accrued enough hours in the cockpit to qualify for her commercial pilot’s licence, which set her on the path to making history.

She completed her career as captain of a Boeing 777, but never lost her passion for sailing. She became a champion RYA Offshore Yacht-Master and, before her death in 2011, planned to sail across the Atlantic.

Barbara’s plaque completes a heritage trail which has been in the making for the last 24 months. She joins such village luminaries as Bob Anderson – an Olympic fencer who choreographed fight scenes for blockbuster hits like The Lord of the Rings – and Antarctic explorer Ernest Joyce.

Designed to showcase the village's wealth of history and culture, councillors hope the blue plaque proves Felpham punches well above its weight when it comes to heritage.

For Mr Watson, who spearheaded the project, Barbara’s plaque is a fitting end to the trail – not least because it will be unveiled on International Women’s Day, which he described as a ‘perfect and fitting tribute’ to the pioneering pilot.

“Barbara was a true inspiration," he added. “All who were privileged to know her say that she was a determined woman who had real charisma and charm. She broke through more than just sound barriers to achieve her dreams.”

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