By November of 1920 Bessie Coleman was on her way to France. She was eventually accepted by the Ecole d'Aviation des Freres Caudron at Le Crotoy in Somme for a 10 month flight training course. Flying a French Nieuport Type 82, Bessie finished the course three months early and obtained her Federation Aeronautique Internationale (FAI) license on June 15, 1921--the first U.S. woman of any race to do so directly.

Other U.S. women had received their licenses from affiliated FAI clubs. She returned to Paris for additional training and by mid-September she was on her way home leaving Cherbourg, France, on the S.S. Manchuria. She arrived in New York and by October was back in Chicago with a stunning French wardrobe including dresses, a tailored flying suit, and a leather coat.