First Woman Thunderbird Pilot, Lieutenant Colonel Nicole Malachowski 2012 US Air Force
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“A graduate of the U.S. Air Force Academy, Lt. Col. Nicole Malachowski has
flown the F-15E as a member of five different fighter squadrons since 1999.
Here, she shares her experience as the first female Thunderbird pilot,
serving as a White House Fellow and being the commander of the largest
fighter training unit in the Air Force.”
Public domain film from the United States Air Force.
Nicole Margaret Ellingwood Malachowski (born September 26, 1974) is a United States Air Force officer and the first female pilot selected to fly as part of the USAF Air Demonstration Squadron, better known as the Thunderbirds. Her aviator call sign is “FiFi”. Her first public performance was in March 2006 and she spent the 2006 and 2007 air show seasons flying the Number 3 (Right Wing) aircraft in the diamond formation. Prior to attending the U.S. Air Force Academy and joining the USAF, Lieutenant Colonel Malachowski was a Civil Air Patrol Cadet.
Between September 1, 2008 and August 31, 2009, Malachowski was on special assignment, participating in the White House Fellows Program for the Class of 2008–2009, assigned to the General Services Administration…
Early years, education, and personal biography
Nicole Malachowski was born Nicole Ellingwood in Santa Maria, California, to Cathy and Robert Ellingwood. In high school, she was a cadet member of the Nevada Wing of the Civil Air Patrol and participated in AFJROTC, where she was rated cadet colonel, the highest rank a cadet could achieve. She started working on her pilot’s license before graduating from high school. She graduated from Western High School in Las Vegas in 1992.
She earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Management, with a minor in French, from the United States Air Force Academy, graduating 124th of 922 in the Class of 1996. While at the academy she was both a pilot and cadet instructor pilot in the academy’s TG-4 glider program. She also earned a Master of Arts degree from American Military University in National Security Policy.
Malachowski is married to Lieutenant Colonel Paul G. Malachowski, an F-15E Weapons System Operator. The couple met while both were serving as aircrew in the 48th Fighter Wing at RAF Lakenheath in the United Kingdom. In April 2010 she was admitted to the Mother and Infant Care Center (MICC) of the National Naval Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland, in expectation of the birth of twins. After a confinement of nine weeks, she gave birth to daughter Norah and son Garrick on June 6, 2010.
Malachowski attended undergraduate pilot training at Columbus AFB, Mississippi. She finished fourth in her class and selected the only F-15E Strike Eagle slot allotted to her class. After meeting height requirements for fighter pilots, she trained at Seymour Johnson AFB, North Carolina, with the 4th Fighter Wing.
She served two operational tours at RAF Lakenheath, England, with the 48th Fighter Wing; assignment to the 4th Fighter Wing at Seymour Johnson AFB; and as an Air Liaison Officer supporting the 2nd Infantry Division at Camp Red Cloud, South Korea. During her second tour at RAF Lakenheath, Malachowski deployed for four months in early 2005 in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom, flying 26 combat missions. She applied and was accepted as a Thunderbird pilot in June 2005. She completed transition training to the F-16 Fighting Falcon with the 56th Fighter Wing at Luke Air Force Base, Arizona and flew with the Thunderbird Team based at Nellis AFB, Nevada in November 2005 until November 2007.
After successfully completing her tour with the USAF Thunderbirds in November 2007, including approximately 140 performances, Malachowski served on staff of the Commander, United States Air Force Warfare Center, at Nellis Air Force Base, Nevada, to June 2008.
Malachowski was selected to participate as a White House Fellow in Washington, D.C., from September 1, 2008 to August 31, 2009, working in the General Services Administration with the Presidential Transition Support Team and as deputy chief of staff. Malachowski has been an advocate of recognition as veterans of women pilots who served during World War II…
Malachowski served as deputy commander of the 4th Operations Support Squadron, 4th Operations Group, until November 18, 2011, when she took command of the 333d Fighter Squadron at Seymour Johnson Air Force Base, North Carolina…
