Summary
- Female naval aviator made history with first air-to-air engagement
- VFA-32 completed 1,500 combat missions during Ike’s deployment
- USS Eisenhower is set to retire around 2029 as USS Enterprise joins the fleet
The USS Dwight D. Eisenhower (CVN-69) supercarrier (aka Ike) has just returned home from a prolonged combat mission in the Red Sea. While on deployment, Ike made history when a female Naval Aviator became the first woman in US military history to execute an air-to-air engagement successfully. The engagement came as she took out a Houthi drone in the Red Sea area while flying an F/A-18 Super Hornet.
Female pilot in first air-to-air engagement
During the nine-month deployment on the Eisenhower aircraft carrier, the VFA-32 strike fighter squadron (called the “Fighting Swordsmen”) flew over 3,000 combat hours and completed almost 1,500 combat missions in support of Operations Inherent Resolve and Prosperity Guardian. The Navy stated that the squadron fired over 20 air-to-air missiles against rebel Houthi one-way attack drones, one of which was fired by the American female pilot.
![8332063 - USS Dwight D. Eisenhower Conducts Routine Operations in the Red Sea [Image 2 of 6] - Super Hornet on the catapult at night](https://static1.simpleflyingimages.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/8332063.jpg?q=49&fit=crop&w=1500&dpr=2)
“During one mission, VFA-32 became home to the first American female pilot to engage and kill an air-to-air contact.” – Navy
The female pilot’s name and identity appear to have not been revealed. It is also unclear exactly what type of Houthi drone she took out and what munition she used (although Super Hornets carry AIM-9X Sidewinder air-to-air missiles and AIM-120 AMRAAMs).
Additionally, the Fighting Swordsmen took the fight to the Houthis, leading two of the seven strikes on targets in Houthi-controlled regions of northern Yemen. In all, the squadron fired 120 precision-guided air-to-surface missiles in Yemen. The Flying Swordsmen is a Virginia-based fighter squadron operating 12 F/A-18F aircraft.
Not the first time Ike made history
In April 1993, the US Department of Defense allowed women to fly in combat; the next year, the first women flew in combat missions. That event happened when an F/A-15C Hornet took off from the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower in the Persian Gulf as part of the US commitment to enforcing a no-fly zone over Iraq.
Photo: USN
Commissioned in 1977, the aging Ike is now the second-oldest carrier in the US Navy (after the USS Nimtz CVN 68). She was last overhauled in 2001-2005 and is expected to retire around 2029 as the USS Enterprise (CVN 80), currently under construction, comes into service.
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USS Eisenhower
The Ike was the centerpiece of the larger Carrier Strike Group (CSG) 2, which also included the cruiser USS Philippine Sea, the destroyers USS Mason and Gravely, and the Carrier Air Wing. Carrier strike groups are typically accompanied by unnamed submarines. The group has been replaced by the USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN-71) and its strike group.
During the deployment, the Houthis claimed multiple times to have struck (and even sunk) the USS Eisenhower. The carrier tended not to address the rumors of its demise directly. Instead, the ship commander would post pictures of activities, such as the crew enjoying Taco Tuesday, on social media. As Mark Twain once said, “The report of my death was an exaggeration” (often misquoted as “reports of my death/demise have been greatly exaggerated“).