Chitty, Letitia (1897–1982)

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Chitty, Letitia (1897–1982)

English civil engineer. Born July 15, 1897; died Oct 1982; Newnham College, Cambridge, mathematical tripos, 1917, mechanical science tripos, 1921, MA, 1926.

Employed by Admiralty Air Department to study stress on planes (1917–18); worked as research assistant and later as lecturer at Imperial College in London (1934–62); during WWII, did research on stress analysis of experimental airplanes, as well as safety and design of dams, bridges, and shelters; conducted experimental studies for Iraq's Dokan Dam; was 1st woman to earn 1st-class honors at Cambridge University's mechanical sciences tripos, 1st woman to become a member of the Institution of Civil Engineers' Technical Committee, and 1st woman recipient of Telford Gold Medal (1969); elected fellow of Imperial College (1971) and Royal Aeronautical Society.