Elm Farm Ollie was the first cow to fly in an airplane

Fixed-wing aircraft

A fixed-wing aircraft is an aircraft capable of flight using wings that generate lift due to the vehicle's forward airspeed. Fixed-wing aircraft are distinct from rotary-wing aircraft in which wings rotate about a fixed mast and ornithopters in which lift is generated by flapping wings.A powered...

, doing so on 18 February 1930, as part of the International Air Exposition in St. Louis, Missouri

St. Louis, Missouri

St. Louis is an independent city on the eastern border of Missouri, United States. With a population of 319,294, it was the 58th-largest U.S. city at the 2010 U.S. Census. The Greater St...

, United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

. On the same trip, which covered 72 miles from Bismarck, Missouri

Bismarck, Missouri

Bismarck is a city in St. Francois County, Missouri, United States. The estimated 2008 population was 1,538. The population was 1,470 at the 2000 census.-History:...

, to St. Louis, she also became the first cow milked in flight. This was done ostensibly to allow scientists to observe midair effects on animals, as well as for publicity purposes. A St. Louis newspaper trumpeted her mission as being "to blaze a trail for the transportation of livestock by air."

Elm Farm Ollie was reported to have been an unusually productive Guernsey cow

Guernsey cattle

The Guernsey is a breed of cattle used in dairy farming. It is fawn and white in colour, and is particularly renowned for the rich flavour of its milk, as well as its hardiness and docile disposition.-Milk:...

, requiring three milkings a day and producing 24 quart

Quart

The quart is a unit of volume equal to a quarter of a gallon, two pints, or four cups. Since gallons of various sizes have historically been in use, quarts of various sizes have also existed; see gallon for further discussion. Three of these kinds of quarts remain in current use, all approximately...

s of milk during the flight itself. Wisconsin

Wisconsin

Wisconsin is a U.S. state located in the north-central United States and is part of the Midwest. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michigan to the northeast, and Lake Superior to the north. Wisconsin's capital is...

 native Elsworth W. Bunce milked her, becoming the first man to milk a cow mid-flight. Elm Farm Ollie's milk was sealed into paper cartons which were parachuted to spectators below. Charles Lindbergh

Charles Lindbergh

Charles Augustus Lindbergh was an American aviator, author, inventor, explorer, and social activist.Lindbergh, a 25-year-old U.S...

 reportedly received a glass of the milk.

Although Elm Farm Ollie was born and raised in Bismarck, Missouri, it is largely in the dairy state of Wisconsin

Wisconsin

Wisconsin is a U.S. state located in the north-central United States and is part of the Midwest. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michigan to the northeast, and Lake Superior to the north. Wisconsin's capital is...

where her fame has lived on.

External links

• Tale of a flying cow is milked for all it's worth. South Coast Today
• Time magazine, February 24, 1930, article about airshow; no mention of cow
• Time magazine, March 3, 1930, article about airshow; no mention of cow