A U.S. Navy pilot shot down a Houthi drone on July 14, becoming the first American woman to shoot down a drone in air-to-air combat, the Navy announced.
A US Navy fighter pilot has made history by becoming the first American woman to win an air-to-air combat. The pilot, who has not been named, was with Fighter Attack Squadron 32 and flew from the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower, an aircraft carrier. statedWhile piloting an F/A-18 Super Hornet, she successfully engaged and destroyed a unprovoked Houthi attack drone, one of many deployed by the Yemen-based Houthis to target civilians in the Red Sea.
U.S. Navy pilot shoots down Houthi attack drone, becoming first American woman to record an air-to-air kill https://t.co/gPPNgRnPcY pic.twitter.com/IWwW80eVXR
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Known as the “Flying Swordsmen,” the squadron has accumulated more than 3,000 combat hours and flown nearly 1,500 combat missions under Operation Inherent Resolve and Operation Guardian of Prosperity, the latter of which was created specifically to respond to Houthi attacks on international shipping, during which the squadron fired more than 20 air-to-air missiles at a Houthi drone. (Related article: Houthi attacks could raise prices of teddy bears for American children)
According to the release, the squadron has logged more than 3,000 combat hours and flown nearly 1,500 missions during Operation Indestructible Resolve and Operation Guardian of Prosperity, the latter of which was established in December 2023 to counter Houthi-led attacks on international shipping, while the former was focused on ISIS. Eisenhower's Swordsman strike fighter squadron fired more than 20 air-to-air missiles at Houthi drones during these engagements.
“During one mission, VFA-32 was home to the first American female pilot to engage and shoot down an aircraft in air-to-air combat,” the report states.
The U.S. Navy's Blue Angels perform an air show over the Severn River in Annapolis, Maryland, as part of the U.S. Naval Academy's Commissioning Week, May 22, 2024. (Photo by Jim Watson/AFP via Getty Images)
The event marked a significant moment in U.S. military history, 30 years after Lt. Kara Hultgreen became the Navy's first carrier-based female fighter pilot. according to According to CNN, President Eisenhower's carrier strike group recently returned from a nine-month deployment in which it engaged more than 460 Houthi targets in Yemen as part of a broader operation to secure the region.
The milestone not only underscores the important role of female pilots in combat, but also highlights the strategic military response by the U.S. and its allies to the Houthi aggression, which has escalated in the wake of regional tensions.
