50 Years of Women Flying in Naval Aviation

By LT Sorcha "Sparky" Hartman, USN

MILTON, FL. – 34 years ago, LT Patsy Van Bloem checked into Helicopter Training Squadron 18 (HT-18) as the first female instructor pilot. It may be surprising to some that she began instructing in 1989 - when an entire 16 years had already passed since women were allowed to start flight training as unrestricted naval aviators (the first female helicopter pilot received her Wings of Gold in 1974). 2023 marks the 50th year of women flying in Naval Aviation, and this is a monumental landmark for the trailblazers who worked tirelessly against all odds fifty years ago.

First female Junior Officer Conversion IPs (JO CIPs) are: from HT-28, LT Audrey Peterson; and from HT18, LT Sorcha Hartman. Not pictured is the first JO from HT-8, LT Erin Snook.

Women in the Navy, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard are still having ‘firsts’ in their respective fields all the time, from the first female African-American TACAIR pilot, the first female Student Naval Aviator selected directly to the F-35C syllabus, to the first female Marine Corps pilot to command a NASA mission that went to the International Space Station. T here are whole aircraft launching operations that have been comprised entirely of women, all the way from the LSE (Landing Signal Enlisted) on the flight deck to the Air Officer in the ship’s tower. The landscape of flying is changing, and it starts in the cradle of Naval Aviation, in Pensacola, FL.

At Naval Air Station Whiting Field, history is being quietly made, yet again, as the first female TH-73A pilots are learning, defining, and teaching the brand new helicopter trainer to instructors and students alike. From the dedicated staff positions to the first conversion pilots, all the women currently involved in flying the TH-73A are breaking new ground every day. While women still only represent about 12% of aviators in the military, the percentage is growing, and finding women who are leading change and defining the future is increasingly commonplace.

First female Junior Officer Conversion IPs (JO CIPs) are: from HT-28, LT Audrey Peterson; and from HT18, LT Sorcha Hartman. Not pictured is the first JO from HT-8, LT Erin Snook.