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US Navy welcomes first Black female tactical aircraft pilot

Sarah Jones

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​KINGSVILLE, Texas — The U.S. Navy has welcomed its first Black female Tactical Aircraft pilot.

“MAKING HISTORY!” the U.S. Navy tweeted in response to a post that Lt. j.g. Madeline Swegle had completed naval flight school and would later this month receive the flight officer insignia known as the “Wings of Gold.”

The Naval Air Training Command tweeted that Swegle is the Navy’s “first known Black female TACAIR pilot.”

According to Stars and Stripes, Swegle is from Burke, Virginia, and graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy in 2017.

Officials said she is assigned to the Redhawks of Training Squadron 21 in Kingsville, Texas.

Swegle’s milestone comes more than 45 years after Rosemary Mariner in 1974 became the first woman to fly a tactical fighter jet, according to news outlets.

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The National Association of Black Military Women (NABMW) website supports the mission of the organization - to seek out, tell, and record the history of Black Military Women. We use various public information tools (Newspapers, websites, books, documentaries, and other media outlets) to search out information on black military women. A lot of personal military history information is provided by the specific individuals through the NABMW Journal and membership. We do not take responsibility for the validity of any information provided to us from these individuals or from public information postings from tools listed above. The source of all information on this website will be listed. In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. section 107, this information is displayed without profit or payment to those who expressed an interest in receiving this information for non-profit research and educational purposes only. Photos and images are from the National Archives, The Naval History Center, U.S. Army, U.S. Navy, Defense Visual Information Center and personal collections of many of the women and men.  This website is for and about Black Military Women who served our country - by an organization of military women, family and friends who are committed to seeking out the history of Black Military Women who served our country. Photos are not to be misused or taken out of context when shared.

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