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Barbara Ann Allen Rainey (August 20, 1948 – July 13, 1982) was one of the first six female pilots in the U.S. armed forces. Rainey received her wings of gold as the first female to be designated a
naval aviator Naval aviation is the application of military air power by navies, whether from warships that embark aircraft, or land bases. Naval aviation is typically projected to a position nearer the target by way of an aircraft carrier. Carrier-based a ...
in February 1974 and became the first Navy woman to qualify as a jet pilot. She attained the rank of
Lieutenant Commander Lieutenant commander (also hyphenated lieutenant-commander and abbreviated Lt Cdr, LtCdr. or LCDR) is a commissioned officer rank in many navies. The rank is superior to a lieutenant and subordinate to a commander. The corresponding rank ...
in the
United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage of ...
. She was killed in an aircraft crash in 1982 while performing her duties as a
flight instructor A flight instructor is a person who teaches others to operate aircraft. Specific privileges granted to holders of a flight instructor qualification vary from country to country, but very generally, a flight instructor serves to enhance or evaluate ...
.


Early life and career

Allen was born at
Bethesda Naval Hospital The Walter Reed National Military Medical Center (WRNMMC), formerly known as the National Naval Medical Center and colloquially referred to as the Bethesda Naval Hospital, Walter Reed, or Navy Med, is a United States' tri-service military medi ...
in
Bethesda, Maryland Bethesda () is an unincorporated, census-designated place in southern Montgomery County, Maryland. It is located just northwest of Washington, D.C. It takes its name from a local church, the Bethesda Meeting House (1820, rebuilt 1849), which i ...
and was the daughter of a career Naval
Officer An officer is a person who has a position of authority in a hierarchical organization. The term derives from Old French ''oficier'' "officer, official" (early 14c., Modern French ''officier''), from Medieval Latin ''officiarius'' "an officer," fr ...
. She graduated from Lakewood High School in California, where she was an outstanding athlete and a member of the
National Honor Society The National Honor Society (NHS) is a nationwide organization for high school students in the United States and outlying territories, which consists of many chapters in high schools. Selection is based on four criteria: scholarship (academic achi ...
. Consistently on the dean's list at
Long Beach City College Long Beach City College (LBCC) is a public community college in Long Beach, California. It was established in 1927 and is divided into two campuses, the Liberal Arts Campus in Lakewood Village and the Pacific Coast Campus in central Long Beach ...
, California, she later transferred to and graduated from
Whittier College Whittier College (Whittier Academy (1887–1901)) is a private liberal arts college in Whittier, California. It is a Hispanic Serving Institution (HSI) and, as of fall 2022, had approximately 1,300 (undergraduate and graduate) students. It was ...
in California where she became a member of the Thalian Society. She was commissioned in the
United States Navy Reserve The United States Navy Reserve (USNR), known as the United States Naval Reserve from 1915 to 2005, is the Reserve Component (RC) of the United States Navy. Members of the Navy Reserve, called Reservists, are categorized as being in either the Sele ...
in ceremonies at U.S Navy Officer Candidate School in
Newport, Rhode Island Newport is an American seaside city on Aquidneck Island in Newport County, Rhode Island. It is located in Narragansett Bay, approximately southeast of Providence, south of Fall River, Massachusetts, south of Boston, and northeast of New Y ...
in December 1970, and was assigned to the
Naval Amphibious Base Little Creek A navy, naval force, or maritime force is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral, or ocean-borne combat operations and related functions. It include ...
,
Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth are ...
. She later served on the staff of the Supreme Allied Command, Atlantic in
Norfolk, Virginia Norfolk ( ) is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. Incorporated in 1705, it had a population of 238,005 at the 2020 census, making it the third-most populous city in Virginia after neighboring Virginia Bea ...
.


First female naval aviator

In early 1973, the
Secretary of the Navy The secretary of the Navy (or SECNAV) is a statutory officer () and the head (chief executive officer) of the Department of the Navy, a military department (component organization) within the United States Department of Defense. By law, the se ...
John W. Warner announced a test program to train female Naval Aviators. Seeking a greater challenge and wanting to follow in the footsteps of her
U.S. Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for conducting expeditionary and amphibious operations through co ...
aviator brother, Bill, Allen applied to the program and was accepted into the U.S. Naval Flight Training School. Allen and seven other women reported for flight training on March 2, 1973 at
Naval Air Station Pensacola Naval Air Station Pensacola or NAS Pensacola (formerly NAS/KNAS until changed circa 1970 to allow Nassau International Airport, now Lynden Pindling International Airport, to have IATA code NAS), "The Cradle of Naval Aviation", is a United State ...
,
Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to th ...
. She was the first of her class to earn her Wings of Gold and was designated the first female
naval aviator Naval aviation is the application of military air power by navies, whether from warships that embark aircraft, or land bases. Naval aviation is typically projected to a position nearer the target by way of an aircraft carrier. Carrier-based a ...
in history in ceremonies at
Naval Air Station Corpus Christi Naval Air Station Corpus Christi is a United States Navy naval air base located six miles (10 km) southeast of the central business district (CBD) of Corpus Christi, in Nueces County, Texas. History A naval air station for Corpus Christi ...
,
Texas Texas (, ; Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by b ...
, on February 22, 1974. She was assigned to fly C-1s in
Alameda, California Alameda ( ; ; Spanish for " tree-lined path") is a city in Alameda County, California, located in the East Bay region of the Bay Area. The city is primarily located on Alameda Island, but also spans Bay Farm Island and Coast Guard Island, a ...
with a transport squadron and became the first jet qualified woman in the U.S. Navy flying the
T-39 The North American Sabreliner, later sold as the Rockwell Sabreliner, is an American mid-sized business jet developed by North American Aviation. It was offered to the United States Air Force (USAF) in response to its Utility Trainer Experimen ...
. Allen married John C. Rainey, whom she had met during her flight training. While pregnant with her first daughter, she transferred to the Naval Reserve in November 1977. She remained active in the Naval Reserves and, while pregnant with her second daughter, qualified to fly the R6D (DC-6). In 1981, with the Navy experiencing a shortage of flight instructors, she was accepted for recall to active duty as a flight instructor and was assigned to Training Squadron Three (VT-3) based at
Naval Air Station Whiting Field Naval Air Station Whiting Field is a United States Navy base located near Milton, Florida, with some outlying fields near Navarre, Florida, in south and central Santa Rosa County, and is one of the Navy's two primary pilot training bases (the othe ...
flying the T-34C Mentor. On July 13, 1982, Allen, along with trainee,
Ensign An ensign is the national flag flown on a vessel to indicate nationality. The ensign is the largest flag, generally flown at the stern (rear) of the ship while in port. The naval ensign (also known as war ensign), used on warships, may be differ ...
Donald Bruce Knowlton, was practicing touch-and-go landings at Middleton Field near
Evergreen, Conecuh County, Alabama Evergreen is a city in Conecuh County, Alabama, United States. As of the 2010 census the population was 3,944. The city is the county seat of Conecuh County. History Early settlers to the area came from Georgia and South Carolina beginning in ...
when the aircraft banked sharply, lost altitude, and crashed. Allen and Knowlton were both killed in the crash. Uncertainty over the cause of the crash led the pilots' surviving spouses to file a
product liability Product liability is the area of law in which manufacturers, distributors, suppliers, retailers, and others who make products available to the public are held responsible for the injuries those products cause. Although the word "product" has bro ...
suit against
Beech Aircraft Corporation Beechcraft is an American brand of civil aviation and military aircraft owned by Textron Aviation since 2014, headquartered in Wichita, Kansas. Originally, it was a brand of Beech Aircraft Corporation, an American manufacturer of general aviati ...
, portions of which would eventually be heard by the
United States Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that involve a point o ...
in '' Beech Aircraft Corp. v. Rainey''.'Beech Aircraft Corp. v. Rainey, 488 US 153'
''Supreme Court of United States'', 1988. Retrieved on 27 November 2012.


See also

*
Naval Aviation Naval aviation is the application of military air power by navies, whether from warships that embark aircraft, or land bases. Naval aviation is typically projected to a position nearer the target by way of an aircraft carrier. Carrier-based ...


References


Further reading

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Rainey, Barbara 1948 births 1982 deaths Burials at Arlington National Cemetery Female United States Navy officers Aviators killed in aviation accidents or incidents in the United States Accidental deaths in Alabama People from Bethesda, Maryland Women United States Naval Aviators Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in 1982 20th-century American women 20th-century American people