Glamour, danger, liberation: in a Mad Men–era of commercial flight, Pan Am World Airways attracted the kind of young woman who wanted out, and wanted up

Required to have a college education, speak two languages, and possess the political savvy of a Foreign Service officer during the Cold War, a jet-age stewardess serving on iconic Pan Am between 1966 and 1975 also had to be between 5'3" and 5'9", between 105 and 140 pounds, and under 26 years of age at the time of hire. Cooke’s intimate storytelling—a remarkable work of women's history—weaves together the real-life stories of a memorable cast of characters, from small-town girl Lynne Totten, a science major who decided life in a lab was not for her, to Hazel Bowie, one of the relatively few Black stewardesses of the era, as they embraced the liberation of their new jet-set life. Cooke brings to light the story of Pan Am stewardesses’ role in the Vietnam War, as the airline added runs from Saigon to Hong Kong for planeloads of weary young soldiers straight from the battlefields, who were off for five days of R&R, and then flown back to war. Finally, with Operation Babylift—the dramatic evacuation of 2,000 children during the fall of Saigon—the book’s special cast of stewardesses unites to play an extraordinary role on the world stage.

• Aviation History Comes to Life: Go behind the scenes of the iconic airline, from its rigorous, Mad Men-era stewardess requirements to its secret missions for the U.S. government.
• Women's Liberation at 30,000 Feet: Follow the true stories of women like Lynne Totten and Hazel Bowie, who escaped the confines of 1960s convention for the glamour, danger, and independence of a jet-set life.
• The Cold War Front Line: Discover how Pan Am's globe-trotting stewardesses became unofficial diplomats and intelligence assets in a world of international intrigue.
• Untold Stories of the Vietnam War: Witness the stewardesses’ unheralded role, from flying weary soldiers on R&R flights to their heroic participation in the dramatic Operation Babylift during the fall of Saigon.