Gender Integration In The Usaf Fighter Community

"With the stroke of a pen on April 28, 1993, Secretary of Defense Les Aspin eliminated a policy barring females from flying in combat, opening the door for first United States Air Force (USAF) female fighter and bomber aircrew. On the eve of the twenty-fifth anniversary of that momentous decision, groundbreaking aviators like Brigadier General Jeannie Leavitt, F-15E Strike Eagle pilot, and Brigadier General (sel.) Kristen Goodwin, B-52 Stratofortress pilot, stand as exemplars for others to follow. Despite their achievement of General Officer rank and certain hardships in blazing the trail, in the fighter community very few females followed, and their population among the Combat Air Force (CAF) has been flat among fighter pilots and only incrementally rising among weapons systems operators. Currently, of the 2,400 fighter pilots in the CAF, only 42 females hold primary responsibility as fighter pilots, resulting in scarcity in front-line units. In fact, the CAF’s most numerous fighter, the F-16C “Fighting Falcon” had only one female fighter pilot in the last six years at its second-largest operational wing, the 388th Fighter Wing. Shockingly, the AF’s newest fifth-generation fighter, the F-35A “Lightning II”, currently has zero females of 123 F-35 pilots, despite reaching its Initial Operating Capability (IOC) in August 2016. Some might say the low percentages and stagnated rate of participation in fighter aircraft is not a problem, since the “door is open”, and might also dismiss retention challenges as owed to females having left the Service to dedicate themselves fully to raising children. This paper challenges those assertions, and argues instead that “opening the door is not enough”, and that subtle structural and cultural barriers limit advancement and stifle attainment of gender equality in the fighter community, which in turn yields an almost entirely male pool of General Officer candidates and General Officers. By understanding and appreciating the uniqueness of the fighter communities being integrated, rather than simply viewing them as “male-dominated”, policy makers can better tailor appropriate solutions for inspiring, recruiting, training, and retaining talented females. Flying fighter aircraft imposes unique demands on female pilots, and as a consequence, unique challenges on their willingness to continue service to senior officer ranks, and should therefore receive just such a tailored approach. Only when a much increased cadre of combat ready and experienced female senior leaders is created will policies start to reflect a female “voice” and the AF begin to fully appreciate the diverse perspectives they bring. As the Joint Force opens more and more combat fields to women, drawing lessons from the USAF’s first 25 years of gender integration in fighter aircraft, including progress and persistent challenges, can help inform leaders managing integration in their Services. Through interviews and social media polling, this paper finds that by-and-large the fighter culture of today treats female fighter pilots equally, with no differences between the sexes in terms of flying and fighting skill at the outset. As careers progress, however males outpace females in technical flying competence, with many who rise to senior ranks having attended the Fighter Weapons School (WIC), compared to zero females who have graduated from F-15C, F-22, and F-16 WIC, and only two who have graduated from F-15E WIC. Since the AF highly values technical competence in their commanders, women are once again underrepresented in “Tier 1” command positions, and as the career snowball continues to roll downhill for men, women face an uphill climb. Recommendations include focusing on embedding fighter pilots earlier along accessions paths, at the AF Academy and in Phase II of pilot training, and assigning mentorship to females who graduate fighter training, essentially making them High Potential Officers (HPOs) until such time as the percentage of females in fighters increases at a favorable rate."--Abstract.