Capt. Anneliese Satz: First Female Marine To Pilot An F-35B Fighter Jet

US Marine Capt. Anneliese Satz, 29, has become the first female Marine to pilot an F-35B fighter jet — almost 25 years after having their first female aviator. She credits her success to “showing up prepared and working diligently,” the Marine Corp announced in a press release last week.

A former commercial helicopter pilot, Satz hails from Boise, Idaho, has completed the F-35B Basic Course in June 27. She has been training for four years with the Marine Corps as a naval aviator, including in Corpus Christi, Texas, and Meridian, Mississippi, before arriving at Marine Corps Air Station in Beaufort, South Carolina, in July 2018.

Key Takeaways:

• Anneliese Satz, 29, became the first female Marine to pilot a F-35B fighter jet
• She was a commercial helicopter pilot before joining the Marine Corps
• She recently became the first woman to complete the F-35B Basic Course, qualifying to be an F-35B jet pilot

She took her first flight — solo — in the F-35B Lightning II Joint Strike Fighter, the first-ever supersonic short take-off/vertical landing stealth aircraft, in October 2018.

“I truly believe that showing up prepared and working diligently are two major keys to success.”

She recently became the first woman to complete the F-35B Basic Course, where she was then qualified to be an F-35B jet pilot.

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“The syllabus thoroughly prepares you for that first time you take off and for every flight after that, it’s an exhilarating experience,” she said in the press release.

According to the Marines. Satz, who has more than 300 flight hours, will now join a unit called the Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 121, also known as the 'Green Knights' in Iwakuni, Japan.

Capt. Anneliese Satz has become the Marine Corps’ first female F-35B pilot.

Semper Fi, Ma’am.

— U.S. Marines (@USMC) August 9, 2019

Satz thanked her instructors and other members for helping her complete the program. “I am thankful to have had the opportunity to learn from all of them,” Satz said. “I am incredibly excited to get to VMFA-121 and look forward to the opportunity to serve in the Fleet Marine Forces.”

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Before her endeavours in the Marines, Satz also donned the hat of a commercial pilot flying helicopters. She attributes her helicopter piloting and training schools which helped her shape up to her potential. “At each of my training schools I did my best,” Satz said. “I truly believe that showing up prepared and working diligently are two major keys to success,” added Satz, a graduate of Boise State University, according to NBC affiliate KTVB in Boise.

Feature Image Credit: NBC News

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