Deutsche Sportfliegerinnen in Staaken, W. Berlin, Germany

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The title places this group of German women sport pilots at Staaken, on the western edge of Berlin, where aviation activity was concentrated in the late 1930s. Among the named subjects is Elly Beinhorn, one of Germany's best-known aviators, who gained fame in the early 1930s with long-distance flights to Africa, Asia and Australia. The photograph came through Wide World Photos and the New York Times Berlin bureau, so it was likely made for the press, which often used portraits like this to present women pilots to readers. The record gives little detail on the other sitters, so the picture is best read as a view of the women flyers of the period and the publicity surrounding them.

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