Commercial Aerospace

First female Gripen pilot makes solo flight

Oct. 12, 2010

LIMOPOP, South Africa, 12 Oct. 2010. The South African air force (SAAF) announced that one of their four pilots to complete the first Operational Conversion Course (OCC) instructed by local SAAF pilots, is a woman. Capt. Catherine Labuschagne, made her solo Gripen jet fighter flight at the South African airbase Makhado in the Limpopo province of South Africa -- making her the first female Gripen pilot.

Posted by John McHaleLIMOPOP, South Africa, 12 Oct. 2010. The South African air force announced that one of the four South African air force (SAAF) pilots to complete the first Operational Conversion Course (OCC) instructed by local SAAF pilots, is a woman. Capt. Catherine Labuschagne, made her solo Gripen flight at the South African airbase Makhado in the Limpopo province of South Africa -- making her the first female Gripen pilot. Labuschagne is one of several women serving as pilots in the SAAF and she previously flew the Impala jet before she qualified on the Hawk Lead-In-Fighter trainer to prepare her for the transition to South Africa’s front line fighter. She did fly in the rear seat of Saab Gripen back in 2004, then making history as the first woman pilot to fly a Gripen, this time however, she took to the skies in a single seat Gripen and the instructors at 2 Squadron stayed on the ground, Saab officials say. The four newly qualified Gripen fighter pilots will strengthen SAAF and the 2 Squadron as they will reach operational status sometime next year when their conversion course is completed. The South African government ordered 26 Gripen C/D fighter aircraft in 1999 as part of a strategic defence package, Saab officials say.The SAAF Gripen force, although still in a project phase and not formally an operational system, conducted a large part of the air policing during the FIFA soccer World Cup, Saab officials say.

First female Gripen pilot makes solo flight

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