The bravery of a woman who piloted a damaged A-10 aircraft on a tough combat mission

From its very beginnings, the history of aviation has recorded admirable acts of courage performed by female pilots.

The awesome form of flying of Beo, the first female F-35 demonstration pilot
The uninhabited Howland Island and the light that the aviator Amelia Earhart never saw

One ​​of the pioneers was Amelia Earhart, whose story I told you here. She is a woman I have admired since I learned her story as a child. Her example inspired many women to enlist in the Women's Air Force Pilot Service (WASP) between 1942 and 1944, a time when they were not allowed to pilot fighter jets, but they could transport aircraft and conduct test flights in the US.

The United States Air Force admitted the first female pilots in 1976 and since 1993 they have been able to be fighter pilots, the first of them being Jeannie Leavitt, who flew an F-15E Strike Eagle fighter-bomber (one of my favorite fighter jets), accumulating 300 combat hours in Afghanistan and Iraq, and who retired from active service in 2023 with the rank of Major General.

Today I write this article to talk about a brave female aviator: Kim "KC" Campbell. Born in Honolulu, Hawaii, on June 6, 1975, she graduated from the USAF Academy in 1997, excelling in her studies and receiving the highest rank from that institution, that of Cadet Wing Commander, a distinction previously achieved by her father. Kim received her pilot's wings in December 2000 and was assigned to the 75th Fighter Squadron, equipped with A-10 Thunderbolt II aircraft, at Pope AFB, North Carolina. On April 7, 2003, already as a Captain, during a close air support mission in Baghdad (in which he was flying alongside Lieutenant Colonel Rick "Bino" Turner as flight leader), and after having managed to complete a difficult attack on Iraqi forces in support of personnel from the 3rd Infantry Division of the US Army, the plane piloted by Campbell, an A-10A (the 81-0987), suffered serious damage to its tail and an engine from impacts of an Iraqi surface-to-air missile, rendering the hydraulic controls of the aircraft inoperable.

The situation was very complicated for her. She was over enemy territory, and if she ejected, she could suffer serious injuries, since the ejection seats were designed for male anthropometric measurements, and female pilots were required to sign a document assuming the risks involved in ejecting. The alternative was to fly the aircraft with manual reversal controls, deactivating the hydraulic controls, something very few pilots have been able to do, because in addition to not having airbrakes, this flight method requires the pilot to exert enormous force on the controls. Until then, only three pilots had attempted to land an A-10 with manual reversion flight controls. One ​​of them, Lieutenant Patrick Olson, died on February 27, 1991 when he crashed while attempting to land his OA-10, an advanced air control variant, at King Khalid Military City in Saudi Arabia during the Gulf War.

Taking an enormous risk to her life, Captain Campbell decided to return with her aircraft, having to exert herself greatly until she managed to land successfully in Kuwait. Once on the ground, Campbell was able to assess the severe damage to the aircraft: her A-10 had sustained hundreds of impacts that damaged the tail, the starboard engine, and sections of a wing and a stabilizer. For that display of bravery, Campbell received the Distinguished Flying Cross with Valor Citation , in whose conferral it was noted: "Captain Campbell's aviation prowess and coolness under pressure directly contributed to the successful completion of the critical mission and recovery of a valuable combat aircraft. The outstanding heroism and selfless devotion to duty displayed by Captain Campbell reflect great credit upon herself and the United States Air Force."

In 2021, Kim "KC" Campbell retired from active duty with the rank of Colonel after serving 24 years in the USAF, accumulating 1,800 flight hours in the A-10 and more than 100 combat missions. She is married to an A-10 pilot and they have two children. Yesterday, the YouTube channel Yarnhub posted an excellent video recreating the feat that made this admirable female pilot famous:

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Main photo: kchawg987.