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Renaissance woman flew high in the skies in the 1930s
Gainesville resident recounts her adventures as a pilot in Tennessee
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Gladys Lacey Jones of Gainesville is the last living charter member of the Tennessee chapter of The Ninety-Nines, an organization of female pilots started by Amelia Earhart. - photo by Andrew Akers
“Well, I was always eager to learn something new,” the 103-year-old woman said without further explanation. This simple sentence may not sound like the words of a pioneer, but that is exactly what Gladys Lacey Jones is: a pioneer. The current Gainesville resident first learned to fly 75 years ago, in a time when it was considered unusual for a woman to drive her own car let alone pilot an airplane.