At the end of a history making day, against an
azure blue sky, a magnificent red, white and
blue F- 16 Fighting Falcon stood nose to nose
with a beautiful P- 51 Mustang. The juxtaposition of the past and present fighters inspired
those attending the Gathering of Mustangs and Legends, in
Columbus, Ohio. This display drew a crowd not because of
the airplanes, but because of the two people posing for photographers in front of them. Major Nicole Malachowski (WAI#
29820) is the first female Thunderbird and Betty Blake is one
of the first female P- 51 Women Air Service Pilots (WASP).
Both women have fought the tide of nay-sayers that insisted
women don’t belong in fighter aircraft. text and photography
Although neither by Annette Calicoat
of them would ever call themselves a legend, each woman
holds a special place in aviation history. Their friendship was
formed long before this event and they each hold one another
