Today my walk was dedicated in honor of :
Navy LT. Kara Spears Hultgreen, Age 29 of San Antonio, TX.
Died Oct. 25, 1994
US Navy Officer and Naval Aviator. She was the first American woman Fighter Pilot in the US Navy, and was also the first female fighter pilot killed after the Department of Defense Risk Rule (which prohibited women from entering combat units and from performing combat duties) was rescinded in 1991. Born in Greenwich, Connecticut, she moved to San Antonio in 1981, following her parents’ divorce. She graduated from Alamo Heights High School, and attended the University of Texas at Austin, majoring in Aerospace Engineering, in the pursuit of her dream to become an astronaut. Believing that her best chance to become an astronaut lay with becoming a Navy pilot first, she joined the Navy, enrolling in the aviation officer candidate school at Pensacola Naval Air Station, Florida. Graduating third of seven in her class, she was posted to the Key West Naval Air Station, flying A-6 Intruders, and learning ground attack roles. In late 1991, Congress repealed the combat ban for women, called the Risk Rule, and in 1993, she enrolled in the F-14 Tomcat program at Miramar Naval Air Station, California. After failing her first attempt at carrier qualification, she finally passed on July 24, 1994, becoming the first qualified female F-14 pilot. Assigned to Fighter Squadron VF-213, she prepared with her unit to deploy to the Persian Gulf aboard the Aircraft Carrier, USS Abraham Lincoln. She was considered a skilled pilot, ranking as Average to Above Average in all F-14 qualification tasks. When she wore obvious makeup for a television interview, her call sign changed from “Incredible Hulk” to “Revlon.” She died just three months after passing her carrier qualifications, on October 25, 1994, when her F-14 crashed upon making a landing aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln during a routine training mission.
She is buried in the Arlington National Cemetery , Section 60
We had a great 9.84 Mile walk this morning. We walked out in the country and little ways and stopped to see the buffalo and continued out walk on 127 heading towards town and we stopped by the War Memorial Park and then we stopped by Boats & Harbors to see the big boat anchor. I want to thank my friend Robert for walking with us today and I thank all who honked, waved, and saluted in helping us honor this hero this morning. We had 207 honks. Thank you.
Also a special note of thanks to First National Bank for flying our beautiful colors.
