J U L Y / A U G U S T 2 0 1 6 Aviation forWomen 27
one last chance to learn everything they needed to know, one
last chance to prepare themselves for deployed aircraft carrier
operations—and combat.
After graduating from F-14 training, Vanessa was assigned
to the Fighting Checkmates of VF-211 and subsequently de-
ployed in support of combat operations following 9/11. She
was one of the frst female aviators in combat over Afghani-
stan. "It was an amazing time in history to be fying," Vanes-
sa said. "The missions we few were in direct response to the
terrorist attacks of 9/11. Our country was behind us." As one
of the few qualifed Close Air Support (CAS) aircrew, Vanes-
sa's skills were critical to successful ground operations. "We
were working directly with our troops on the ground in an
air support role, putting laser-guided bombs on enemy tar-
gets to defend our coalition forces in extremis. I'm proud to
have played a small part in that time in our history."
It was in 2003 when Meagan and Vanessa would meet up
in VF-101 The Grim Reapers. Vanessa had already completed
a combat tour and was an instructor; Meagan was in the next-
to-last class of aviators who would fy the legendary fghter.
"Meagan was the only female student pilot during my ten-
ure as an instructor," Vanessa said. "She asked me to be her
instructor during the aircraft carrier qualifcation phase of her
training. It was one of the most rewarding aspects of being an
instructor, fostering safety in a highly dynamic environment."
This is a critical skill if you are going to fy in combat as a
" M E AG A N WA S T H E O N LY F E M A L E S T U D E N T P I LOT
D U R I N G M Y T E N U R E A S A N I N S T R U C TO R ."