Retired F-15 and F-16 fighter pilot Nicole Malachowski tells us about flying 18 inches off the wings of high-speed jets as a U.S. Air Force Thunderbird.

Welcome to Season 6 of the Behind the Wings podcast! In this episode, Nicole takes us through her groundbreaking journey as the first woman to become a Thunderbird pilot. She discusses her combat missions, flying in airshows, her WASP connection, and how a tick-borne illness changed her life forever. There is a lot to learn!

Resources:

• Nicole Malachowski's Website 
• Nicole Malachowski's Bio (Wikipedia) 
• The Thunderbirds' Website
• The Women Airforce Service Pilots (WASP) (Air Force History Fact Sheet)

Chapters:

• (00:00 ) - Intro
  


• (01:23 ) - F-15 vs. F-16
  


• (02:22 ) - Early Interest in Aviation
  


• (03:26 ) - USAFA
  


• (04:42 ) - The Ban on Women In Combat Jets
  


• (06:38 ) - Flying the F-15 and F-16
  


• (09:06 ) - Combat Missions
  


• (13:50 ) - Thunderbirds Admission
  


• (17:58 ) - Thunderbirds Training
  


• (21:33 ) - Combat vs. Thunderbirds
  


• (24:02 ) - Audience Interaction
  


• (27:34 ) - Tick-Borne Illness
  


• (32:57 ) - The Wounded Warrior Program
  


• (34:12 ) - WASP Connection
  


• (36:55 ) - The Future of Veteran Medicine
  


• (39:21 ) - Nicole's Legacy
  


• (40:42 ) - Nicole's Advice
  


• (41:45 ) - Outro