Martha McSally
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Martha McSally is a pilot in the U.S. Air Force. She was the first American woman to fly in combat since the lifting of the 1991 prohibition of women in combat. McSally is also the first woman to command an American fighter squadron, the 354th Fighter Squadron based at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base. McSally is an A-10 Thunderbolt II pilot.
McSally graduated from St. Mary Academy - Bay View and then the United States Air Force Academy in 1988. She earned a Master's degree from Harvard University's John F. Kennedy School of Government. She was selected for fighter pilot school in 1993, and was deployed to Kuwait in January 1995. During that deployment, she flew combat patrol over Iraq enforcing the no-fly zone. In July, 2004, she took command of the A-10 equipped 354th, and was subsequently deployed to Afghanistan, where she deployed weapons in combat for the first time. In 2005 McSally and her squadron were awarded the David C. Shilling Award, given by the Air Force Association for the best aerospace contribution to national defense.
McSally was represented by the Rutherford Institute in her successful lawsuit against the Department of Defense, challenging the military policy that required servicewomen stationed in Saudi Arabia to wear the body-covering abaya when traveling in the country.
[edit] References
- Bergquist, Carl (Maxwell AFB), "1st Air Force female pilot in combat reflects on career", Aerotech News and Review, 2006-12-22
- Bio from Hargrave
- USAToday article
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