Kelly Flinn

Early life

As a youth she moved to Marietta, Georgia where she attended Lassiter High School and was named "Miss LHS" in 1989 upon graduation. She decided to become a pilot after attending Space Camp in Huntsville, Alabama.

Academy

On June 29 1989 Flinn was accepted by both the United States Air Force Academy and the Naval Academy, with nominations from Senator Sam Nunn and Congressman George "Buddy" Darden, choosing to enter the Air Force as a member of the Class of 1993.

Considered by her Air Officer Commanding ("AOC") to be one of the top cadets at the academy, Flinn was active in many cadet programs, and was selected for an overseas Operation Air Force program, spending the summer of 1991 at Kunsan Air Base in Korea. She was further selected during her senior year to participate in an international exchange program with L'École de l'Air (the French Air Force Academy). Eight cadets are selected every year for this program, becoming provisional ambassadors to France, attending L'École de l'Air and participating in its programs. Flinn flew the Cap-10 and received French jump wings.

Pilot training

Flinn entered Undergraduate Pilot Training on January 24, 1994 at Columbus Air Force Base, Mississippi, and later attended water survival training and the Combined Services Support Program at Tyndall Air Force Base near Panama City, Florida. In early 1995, Flinn worked in the Wing Scheduling Office back at Columbus AFB, organizing air show information, as well as coordinating Emergency Procedures Training for NASA.

In April 1995, Flinn began B-52 training at Barksdale Air Force Base, in Louisiana, received the highest possible scores on all evaluations (including flight evaluations), and was titled as a distinguished graduate of her class.

Post-training

Later that October, Flinn was a delegate to the 1995 Defense Advisory Committee on Women in the Service conference at Luke Air Force Base. She spoke to several national military leaders, including the Air Force Chief of Staff and the Secretary of the Air Force about Air Force policies concerning women in combat.

Missions

Arriving at Minot AFB, North Dakota, in October 1995, Flinn was mission-qualified for the B-52H Stratofortress by December, as a co-pilot, participating in various B-52 operations for both conventional and nuclear weapons. Lt. Flinn participated in various missions, including Hornet's Nest, Global Guardian, Bulwark Bronze, Statex, Green Flag, NORI, and CORI. Selected to demonstrate B-52H power projection capabilities to the Secretary of the Air Force, Lt. Flinn flew on a Global Power long-range airstrike during an international exercise, and participated at air shows at Andrews Air Force Base.

Charged

Lt. Flinn faced a court-martial on May 20 1997 for military charges of adultery with a soccer coach at Minot AFB who was married to a female enlisted subordinate; conduct unbecoming an officer; disobeying a lawful order (in writing, to stay away from the married man) and making a false official statement. Flinn's case, due to her high visibility in Air Force recruitment advertisements, as well as the number of her accomplishments during her four years of active-duty service, drew national attention, eventually creating a media circus. She was allowed to resign from the Air Force with a general discharge to avoid a court-martial. She wrote a book "Proud to Be: My Life, The Air Force, The Controversy" (ISBN 0-7567-5753-3, ISBN 0-375-50109-6) giving her side of the story regarding her experiences.

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