Fadiko Gogitidze
First Adjarian woman pilot
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Biography
Fadiko Gogitidze was born in Kobuleti Municipality in 1916.[1] The Tbilisi Flight School opened in 1934 and Gogitidze graduated from there in 1936,[2] and began working as an instructor at the Batumi Aeroclub.[3] She was the first woman in the country to become a pilot, overcoming sexism to enroll for training and to graduate.[2] Her first flight was on 18 August 1936.[4]
Fadiko Gogitidze died while on undertaking a test flight in Batumi on 20 October 1940.[3] She had a three month old daughter named Julieta.[5]
Legacy
There is a sculpture dedicated to her in a park in Batumi. It is an example of Soviet art, depicting a female pilot, with a small child at her feet admiring the airplane.[2] Popov Street in Kobuleti was renamed after her in 2014.[6] A sculpture dedicated to Gogitidze was unveiled at the entrance to Batumi International Airport.[1]