Kelly Flinn incident
| 1LT Kelly Flinn United States Air Force | |
|---|---|
 |
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| Born | December 23, 1970 (age 41) St. Louis, Missouri |
| Allegiance |  United States of America |
| Service/branch | United States Air Force |
| Years of service | 1993-1997 |
| Rank | First lieutenant |
| Other work | Proud to Be |
The Kelly Flinn incident refers to disciplinary action taken against Kelly Flinn (born December 23, 1970), sometimes referred to as Kelly Flynn, by the United States Air Force (USAF) in 1997. Flinn was the first female B-52 pilot in the USAF.[1] Flinn was discharged from the U.S. Air Force in 1997 after being charged with making a false statement, adultery, and disobeying orders.[2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10] Flinn's trouble with the Air Force received widespread media attention at the time and was discussed in a U.S. Senate hearing on May 22, 1997.[2]
[edit] Background
Flinn was born in St. Louis, Missouri,[8] the youngest of five children.[3] She decided to become a pilot after attending Space Camp in Huntsville, Alabama.[8] She attended the Air Force Academy and bomber training, becoming the first woman B-52 pilot in the USAF.[1]
[edit] Charged
1st Lieutenant Kelly Flinn faced a court-martial on May 20, 1997 for military charges of adultery with a civilian soccer coach at Minot Air Force Base 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 for making a false official statement.[3][4][5][7][8][9][10]
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 culminating when the Chief of Staff of the Air Force General Ronald Fogleman made comments on her case at a congressional hearing. Following General Fogleman's comments, Lieutenant Flinn was allowed to resign from the Air Force by Secretary of the Air Force Dr. Sheila E. Widnall with a general discharge instead of facing a court-martial.[2][4][5][6]
She later wrote a book recounting her experiences entitled Proud to Be: My Life, The Air Force, The Controversy (ISBN 0-7567-5753-3, ISBN 0-375-50109-6).[11]
[edit] References
- ^ a b Mary Dejevsky (19 May 1997). "Female B-52 pilot quits over charges of adultery". The Independent on Sunday (London). http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/female-b52-pilot-quits-over-charges-of-adultery-1262385.html.
- ^ a b c http://articles.baltimoresun.com/1997-05-24/news/1997144033_1_kelly-flinn-adultery-air-force
- ^ a b c http://www.nytimes.com/books/97/12/14/home/airwoman-court-martial.html (registration required)
- ^ a b c "Air Force gives pilot a general discharge". CNN. http://www.cnn.com/US/9705/22/flinn.wrap/.
- ^ a b c Brian P. Mitchell (1998). Women in the military: flirting with disaster. Regnery Publishing. pp. 314–315. ISBN 0895263769. http://books.google.com/books?id=KLmrGAVy7vgC&pg=PA314&lpg=PA314&dq=kelly+flinn+-wikipedia+graduate+%22Air+Force%22&source=bl&ots=f_xb5wI55Y&sig=TH117GPyVxmr0mN3MjrBpEUFD1M&hl=en&ei=7AerTvPIJOrosQKbtuT8Dg&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=2&ved=0CCcQ6AEwATgK#v=onepage&q=kelly%20flinn%20-wikipedia%20graduate%20%22Air%20Force%22&f=false.
- ^ a b Tim Brady (2000). The American aviation experience: a history. SIU Press. p. 404. ISBN 0809323710. http://books.google.com/books?id=7ccymjJZxLcC&pg=PA404&lpg=PA404&dq=kelly+flinn+-wikipedia+graduate+%22Air+Force%22&source=bl&ots=h-oqzS_d_V&sig=CyhtInvEm8mDoTN25PzcJ6clyx8&hl=en&ei=7AerTvPIJOrosQKbtuT8Dg&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=5&ved=0CDwQ6AEwBDgK#v=onepage&q=kelly%20flinn%20-wikipedia%20graduate%20%22Air%20Force%22&f=false.
- ^ a b http://www.nytimes.com/books/97/12/14/home/052297airforce-pilot.html (registration required)
- ^ a b c d http://articles.philly.com/1997-02-22/news/25533109_1_flinn-adultery-charge-air-force-news-service
- ^ a b "Travis Pilot A No-Show For Hearing / Captain wants to resign after admitting adultery". The San Francisco Chronicle. May 16, 1997. http://articles.sfgate.com/1997-05-16/opinion/17748634_1_lieutenant-kelly-flinn-air-force-academy-court-martial.
- ^ a b Kempster, Norman (May 22, 1997). "Lying, Not Adultery, Is Female Pilot's Top Crime, AF Says". Los Angeles Times. http://articles.latimes.com/1997-05-22/news/mn-61313_1_air-force.
- ^ Kelly Flinn, Proud to Be: My Life, The Air Force, The Controversy (ISBN 0-7567-5753-3, ISBN 0-375-50109-6)
