Redwood Educational Technologies Announces June Screening of its New Documentary, Crosswinds: The Courageous Life of Cornelia Fort, at Airbase Georgia
March 10, 2025 – Following three years of research and production, Redwood Educational Technologies is proud to announce the first screening of is new documentary, Crosswinds: The Courageous Life of Cornelia Fort, east of the Mississippi on Saturday, June 14, 2025, at CAF Airbase Georgia in Peachtree City, Georgia.
Born in 1919 at the dawn of aviation, Cornelia Fort earned her private pilot’s license in 1940 and her commercial license in 1941, only the second woman in Nashville to have a commercial license. Securing a job as a pilot instructor within the federal government’s Civilian Pilot Training Program (CPTP) in spring 1941, Cornelia moved to Fort Collins, Colorado and then in fall, 1941, moved to Honolulu to work as a CPTP instructor for the Andrew Flying Service at John Rodgers Airport, now the Honolulu International Airport.
Cornelia was in the air early on the morning of Dec. 7 in Interstate Cadet #N37345 with a student who was practicing takeoffs and landings in anticipation of soloing that day. Confronted by a Japanese Zero in the first wave of the Pearl Harbor attack, Cornelia grabbed control of the plane to evade the Zero, landing safely as machine gun fire strafed the runway in front of her. All civilian aviation ceased. Arriving in San Francisco in early March, Cornelia told a news reporter her goal was to one day fly for the U.S. Army.
In September 1942 after receiving a telegram to report for an interview and check flight at New Castle Army Air Base in Wilmington, Delaware, Cornelia was the second woman pilot accepted into the Army’s new Women’s Auxiliary Ferrying Squadron, the WAFS. Ferrying planes from factories to Army air bases and flight schools in the United States, on March 21, 1943, Cornelia was killed in a mid-air collision in a BT-13 during a mission in which 16 BT-13s were being delivered to Dallas. Cornelia was the first woman pilot to die while on active duty with the U.S. Army.
“Cornelia’s life was remarkable in so many ways. She bucked every norm for women in the 1940s while maintaining a loving relationship with her family. As I researched her life, the one characteristic that defined her was courage, unbridled courage in the face of many crosswinds. I am looking forward to screening my documentary at CAF Airbase Georgia as we share a mission to preserve aviation history and especially World War II aviation history,” Judy S. Miller, documentary writer and producer, and founder of Redwood Educational Technologies, said.
Appearing in the documentary are two of Cornelia’s nieces – Chloe Fort and Leontine Fort Linton LaPointe. Cornelia’s great-great-niece is the voice of Cornelia. Also appearing in the film, and in person at CAF Airbase Georgia event to participate in a panel discussion following the screening, is Leslie Sargent, retired FAA inspector, with whom Judy has consulted to solve unanswered questions about the Interstate Cadet Cornelia flew in Hawaii and her BT-13 accident.
The documentary will be available for streaming after the June 14 event at www.stories250.com.
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About Redwood Educational Technologies
For more than 20 years, Judy Miller, founder and editor, has been developing original educational content, based on proven principles of learning and current events, to motivate students to learn. Following her 2009 visit to Normandy, France to cover the 65th anniversary of D-Day, she forged a commitment to keep World War II history alive for people of all ages. As the nation plans to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence in 2026, in 2025, Redwood Educational Technologies is launching a new website for students and adults alike at www.stories250.com to stream documentaries, new original content and its extensive archive.