The U.S. Navy emphatically welcomed its first black female tactical pilot.
Lt. j.g. Madeline Swegle will receive the flight officer insignia commonly known as the “Wings of Gold” on July 31, according to the Associated Press.
“MAKING HISTORY!” the Navy’s Twitter account said in response to the news last week.
MAKING HISTORY! https://t.co/jKJONHvL7S
— U.S. Navy (@USNavy) July 9, 2020
Swegle graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy in 2017 and is a Virginia native.
“Go forth and kick butt,” Rear Adm. Paula Dunn, the Navy’s vice chief of information, said of the achievement.
“Swegle is the @USNavy’s first known Black female TACAIR pilot and will receive her Wings of Gold later this month. HOOYAH!” the Naval Air Training Twitter account said in a post.
BZ to Lt. j.g. Madeline Swegle on completing the Tactical Air (Strike) aviator syllabus. Swegle is the @USNavy’s first known Black female TACAIR pilot and will receive her Wings of Gold later this month. HOOYAH! @FlyNavy @NASKPAO #ForgedByTheSea #CNATRA #CNATRAgrads pic.twitter.com/FKSlURWQhJ
— Naval Air Training (@CNATRA) July 9, 2020
Rosemary Mariner became the first woman to fly tactical jets in the Navy in 1974, and she was the first woman to command an operational air squadron in 1990 during Operation Desert Storm.
The first black female Navy pilot was Brenda E. Robinson in 1980. She also became the first black woman certified for C-1A carrier landings, according to Stars and Stripes.
