She ‘danced in the clouds’ and tore down barriers. Pilot, Mercury 13 icon passes away

Kellye Ivey Brown couldn’t master skiing on the water. Then Myrtle Cagle came along.

Brown grew up two doors down from Cagle in Bibb County, Georgia. When Brown was a kid, Cagle was determined to help her glide across the water on those skis.

“She was the person that if she couldn’t find a way to do something, she’d always work it out,” Brown said. “If you can’t do it on two, we’re going to go for one.”

Brown learned how to water ski, thanks to help from a woman who family says never gave up on a dream.

Cagle, a pilot, flight instructor and mother, passed away on Dec. 22 after a long life with many accomplishments. Cagle was a North Carolina native but called Bibb County home for some time.

She was born June 3, 1925 in North Carolina. Her older brother taught her to fly when she was 12, and she became the youngest licensed pilot in North Carolina at 14 years old, according to Telegraph archives.

As the first girl in her high school’s aviation course, she did so well that she took the instructor’s place when he was drafted, according to her profile in the Georgia Aviation Hall of Fame.

She received her private license at 19, bought a plane at 20 and received her commercial license at 23.

When she was around 18, she attempted to join Women Airforce Service Pilots in World War II, but she didn’t meet the height requirement, said Joy Cagle, Myrtle’s daughter.

Myrtle’s dad built a weight machine that Joy said Myrtle would get in for six hours a day to try to stretch her body.

She was successful, but the height requirement was raised. Myrtle was not accepted into the group, Joy said.

Myrtle was a stunt pilot and later became one of the first women to fly a T-33 Jet in 1953, according to Telegraph archives.

While working as a flight instructor, she met her husband, Walt, married him and moved to Middle Georgia.

It wasn’t long after that she was asked to participate in William Lovelace’s clinic to be tested for NASA Women’s Astronaut Program, according to the Georgia Aviation Hall of Fame.

At the time, she had a total of 4,300 flying hours, and she successfully completed the tests to become one of the Mercury 13.

After the program was terminated, she came back to Macon, and became pregnant with her only child who was born a month before Myrtle’s 40th birthday.

“She’s the most powerful influence in my whole life,” Joy said. “She just felt like she was dancing in the clouds.”

Myrtle was a cheerleader for everyone around her, Joy said. She encouraged people to follow their dreams. She was straightforward, kind and forgiving.

The University of Wisconsin offered the Mercury 13 an honorary doctorate in 2006, and Joy said she flew with her mother to receive it.

After the ceremony, Joy said Myrtle was beaming with joy.

“I was wheeling her out, and she was saying to people as she was leaving, ‘If I could do it, you can do it,’” Joy said.

This story was originally published January 2, 2020 at 5:00 AM.