Loading AI tools
Canadian explorer From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Frances Phipps was a Canadian, and the first woman who reached the North Pole (on April 5, 1971).[1][2]
Phipps grew up in Ottawa, Ontario as Frances Coolin. She was married to the Canadian bush pilot "Weldy" Welland Phipps,[3][4] who had been her flight instructor,[5] and the couple had nine children.[6] Along with her husband, she founded Atlas Aviation in Resolute Bay, Nunavut,[3][7][8] which was at the time the most northerly charter air service in Canada.[9]
The Phipps couple flew together to the North Pole in a Twin Otter ski plane[10] to the North Pole, to install a radar beacon and to promote northern travel.[11] Because no woman had been to the North Pole before, Frances' trip was included in the Guinness Book of World Records.[12]
In 1972, Fran and Weldy bought a 48-foot sailboat, and for over a decade traveled the world by sea.[13]
Phipps died in July 2013 at New Glasgow, Prince Edward Island.[11]
Seamless Wikipedia browsing. On steroids.
Every time you click a link to Wikipedia, Wiktionary or Wikiquote in your browser's search results, it will show the modern Wikiwand interface.
Wikiwand extension is a five stars, simple, with minimum permission required to keep your browsing private, safe and transparent.