Behind the Wings

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)

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