May 22, 1993

Lt. Cmdr. Kathryn P. Hire, the first woman in the Navy to be assigned to a combat unit, flies her first mission as a tactical crew member on a P-3C Update III maritime patrol aircraft during a bombing exercise. Hire flies with VP-62, a Reserve unit based at NAS Jacksonville, Fla. The first Air Force female combat pilot will be 1st Lt. Jeannie Flynn, who will take her place in an F-15E cockpit later in 1993.