Uploaded February 2026 | Updated September 2026, 3 weeks ago
Women in aviation have long had to fight for space in the cockpit, beginning with the Women Airforce Service Pilots (WASPs) of World War II. They proved their skill and courage even as they were denied military status and recognition. In the decades that followed, progress came slowly. By the late 1990s and 2000s, that persistence reshaped what was possible in military aviation. Nicole Malachowski’s selection as the first woman to fly with the U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds marked a powerful culmination of that journey—and a visible breakthrough for women in the skies.
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A little more information:
The WASPs of World War II laid the groundwork for every woman who would later fly in the U.S. military. Formed in 1943, the WASPs were civilian pilots who moved aircraft and tested new planes. Flying nearly every type of military aircraft, they proved that women could handle demanding, high-risk aviation roles. When the war ended, their program was quietly disbanded, and their contributions went unacknowledged for decades.
In the postwar years, aviation returned to peacetime rules that formally excluded women from combat and most military flight roles. Still, women remained involved—training as pilots, working as engineers, instructing, racing, and setting records. Figures like Jackie Cochran and Louise Thaden kept women visible in the air.
The 1970s marked a shift.
As the U.S. military reassessed restrictions, women were admitted to pilot training programs. In 1974, the first women earned U.S. Air Force pilot wings.
In 1993, the combat aviation ban was lifted, opening fighter and bomber cockpits to women. Step by step, barriers that had once seemed permanent were removed.
Nicole Malachowski is a trailblazing U.S. Air Force officer whose career reflects the progress that began with the WASPs. A 1996 graduate of the U.S. Air Force Academy, Malachowski became an F-15E Strike Eagle pilot and flew combat missions.
In 2005, she made history as the first woman selected to fly with the U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds, the elite aerial demonstration team. Flying high-performance fighter aircraft in precise, close-formation maneuvers, the Thunderbirds perform in public airshows and ceremonial events.
Beyond the cockpit, Malachowski held a range of leadership roles, including serving as a White House Fellow and later as a senior Air Force officer, before retiring at the rank of colonel. After retirement, due to complications from tick-borne illness, she became an outspoken advocate for awareness of chronic illness and veterans’ health.
Like the WASPs, Malachowski’s career shows how perseverance, skill, and courage can reshape institutions and expand opportunity for future generations.
#nicolemalachowski #thunderbirds #usaf #usairforce #wasps #femaleaviators #aviation #womenshistory
Subscribe: youtube.com/@SmithsonianMagazine
Learn more about Nicole Malachowski here:smithsonianmag.com/smithsonian-institution/helmet-kept-air-force-pilot-safe-soaring-through-glass-ceiling-180988091
You can see Nicole Malachowski’s flying helmet in the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Air and Space collection here: https://www.si.edu/object/helmet-flying-type-hgu-55p-united-states-air-force%3Anasm_A20080402000
Aeronautics curator Dorothy Cochrane explores the history of the WASPs and their fight for recognition for their contributions to World War II:
smithsonianmag.com/blogs/air-space-museum/2020/06/01/flying-homefront-women-airforce-service-pilots-wasp
During World War II, the WASP proved that an airplane couldn’t tell the difference between a male and female pilot:
smithsonianmag.com/air-space-magazine/we-represented-all-women-31963915
Want to find out more about the U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds? Read here:
smithsonianmag.com/air-space-magazine/thunderbirds-are-back-new-routine-180977758
For more videos from Smithsonian magazine: smithsonianmag.com/videos/category/original-series
Executive Producers: Nicki Marko & Brian Wolly
Supervising Producer & Scriptwriter: Michelle Mehrtens
Producer & Editor: Sierra Theobald
Motion Designer: Ricardo Jaimes
Narrator: Maggie Ross
Women in aviation have long had to fight for space in the cockpit, beginning with the Women Airforce Service Pilots (WASPs) of World War II. They proved their skill and courage even as they were denied military status and recognition. In the decades that followed, progress came slowly. By the late 1990s and 2000s, that persistence reshaped what was possible in military aviation. Nicole Malachowski’s selection as the first woman to fly with the U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds marked a powerful culmination of that journey—and a visible breakthrough for women in the skies.
___
A little more information:
The WASPs of World War II laid the groundwork for every woman who would later fly in the U.S. military. Formed in 1943, the WASPs were civilian pilots who moved aircraft and tested new planes. Flying nearly every type of military aircraft, they proved that women could handle demanding, high-risk aviation roles. When the war ended, their program was quietly disbanded, and their contributions went unacknowledged for decades.
In the postwar years, aviation returned to peacetime rules that formally excluded women from combat and most military flight roles. Still, women remained involved—training as pilots, working as engineers, instructing, racing, and setting records. Figures like Jackie Cochran and Louise Thaden kept women visible in the air.
The 1970s marked a shift.
As the U.S. military reassessed restrictions, women were admitted to pilot training programs. In 1974, the first women earned U.S. Air Force pilot wings.
In 1993, the combat aviation ban was lifted, opening fighter and bomber cockpits to women. Step by step, barriers that had once seemed permanent were removed.
Nicole Malachowski is a trailblazing U.S. Air Force officer whose career reflects the progress that began with the WASPs. A 1996 graduate of the U.S. Air Force Academy, Malachowski became an F-15E Strike Eagle pilot and flew combat missions.
In 2005, she made history as the first woman selected to fly with the U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds, the elite aerial demonstration team. Flying high-performance fighter aircraft in precise, close-formation maneuvers, the Thunderbirds perform in public airshows and ceremonial events.
Beyond the cockpit, Malachowski held a range of leadership roles, including serving as a White House Fellow and later as a senior Air Force officer, before retiring at the rank of colonel. After retirement, due to complications from tick-borne illness, she became an outspoken advocate for awareness of chronic illness and veterans’ health.
Like the WASPs, Malachowski’s career shows how perseverance, skill, and courage can reshape institutions and expand opportunity for future generations.
#nicolemalachowski #thunderbirds #usaf #usairforce #wasps #femaleaviators #aviation #womenshistory
Subscribe: youtube.com/@SmithsonianMagazine
Learn more about Nicole Malachowski here:smithsonianmag.com/smithsonian-institution/helmet-kept-air-force-pilot-safe-soaring-through-glass-ceiling-180988091
You can see Nicole Malachowski’s flying helmet in the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Air and Space collection here: https://www.si.edu/object/helmet-flying-type-hgu-55p-united-states-air-force%3Anasm_A20080402000
Aeronautics curator Dorothy Cochrane explores the history of the WASPs and their fight for recognition for their contributions to World War II:
smithsonianmag.com/blogs/air-space-museum/2020/06/01/flying-homefront-women-airforce-service-pilots-wasp
During World War II, the WASP proved that an airplane couldn’t tell the difference between a male and female pilot:
smithsonianmag.com/air-space-magazine/we-represented-all-women-31963915
Want to find out more about the U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds? Read here:
smithsonianmag.com/air-space-magazine/thunderbirds-are-back-new-routine-180977758
For more videos from Smithsonian magazine: smithsonianmag.com/videos/category/original-series
Executive Producers: Nicki Marko & Brian Wolly
Supervising Producer & Scriptwriter: Michelle Mehrtens
Producer & Editor: Sierra Theobald
Motion Designer: Ricardo Jaimes
Narrator: Maggie Ross
