Captain Rosemary Bryant Mariner (née Bryant; formerly Conatser; April 2, 1953 – January 24, 2019) was an American pilot and one of the first six women to earn their wings as a
United States Naval Aviator
A naval aviator is a commissioned officer or warrant officer qualified as a crewed aircraft pilot in the United States Navy or United States Marine Corps. United States Coast Guard crewed aircraft pilots are officially designated as "Coast Guar ...
in 1974.
[
] She was the first female military pilot to fly a tactical jet and the first to achieve command of an operational aviation squadron.
Early life and education
Rosemary Ann Mariner was born in
Harlingen, Texas, to Cecil James Bryant and Constance Bryant (née Boylan), and grew up in
San Diego, California
San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the eighth most populous city in the United Stat ...
with a keen interest in aircraft and flying. Her mother was a Navy nurse during World War II, and her father served in the
US Army Air Corps
The United States Army Air Corps (USAAC) was the aerial warfare service component of the United States Army between 1926 and 1941. After World War I, as early aviation became an increasingly important part of modern warfare, a philosophical r ...
during
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...
and in the
Air Force
An air force – in the broadest sense – is the national military branch that primarily conducts aerial warfare. More specifically, it is the branch of a nation's armed services that is responsible for aerial warfare as distinct from an ...
during the
Korean War
, date = {{Ubl, 25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953 (''de facto'')({{Age in years, months, weeks and days, month1=6, day1=25, year1=1950, month2=7, day2=27, year2=1953), 25 June 1950 – present (''de jure'')({{Age in years, months, weeks a ...
as an attack pilot. He and co-pilot Donald Carillo were killed in an accidental plane crash on March 20, 1956, when Rosemary was three years old.
While growing up, Mariner enjoyed watching planes at
Miramar Naval Air Station
Marine Corps Air Station Miramar (MCAS Miramar) , formerly Naval Auxiliary Air Station (NAAS) Miramar and Naval Air Station (NAS) Miramar, is a United States Marine Corps installation that is home to the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing, which is the av ...
, and she worked odd jobs, cleaned houses, and washed aircraft to earn money for flying lessons and flight time.
She graduated from
Purdue University
Purdue University is a public land-grant research university in West Lafayette, Indiana, and the flagship campus of the Purdue University system. The university was founded in 1869 after Lafayette businessman John Purdue donated land and mone ...
in December 1972 at age 19, becoming the first woman to graduate from the aeronautical program.
She earned a degree in aviation technology,
and also earned
FAA
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is the largest transportation agency of the U.S. government and regulates all aspects of civil aviation in the country as well as over surrounding international waters. Its powers include air traffic m ...
flight engineer and pilot ratings before joining the Navy.
While in the Navy, Mariner earned a
Master's degree
A master's degree (from Latin ) is an academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice. in
National Security Strategy from the
National War College.
[
]
Navy career
Rosemary Bryant Mariner (then Rosemary B. Conatser) joined the United States Navy in 1973 after being selected as one of the first eight women to enter U.S. Navy pilot training. She completed Officer Candidate School in Newport, RI
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 Yor ...
, then headed to 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 for basic flight training. She was designated a Naval Aviator in June 1974 and became one of the first six women to earn their wings as a United States Naval Aviator
A naval aviator is a commissioned officer or warrant officer qualified as a crewed aircraft pilot in the United States Navy or United States Marine Corps. United States Coast Guard crewed aircraft pilots are officially designated as "Coast Guar ...
, alongside Barbara Allen Rainey
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 in February 1974 and became the f ...
, Jane Skiles O'Dea, Judith Ann Neuffer, Ana Marie Fuqua, and Joellen Drag. In 1975, Mariner was one of the first female military aviators to fly a tactical strike aircraft, a single seat A-4L Skyhawk.[ In 1976, she transitioned to the ]A-7E Corsair II
The LTV A-7 Corsair II is an American carrier-capable subsonic light attack aircraft designed and manufactured by Ling-Temco-Vought (LTV).
The A-7 was developed during the early 1960s as replacement for the Douglas A-4 Skyhawk. Its design was ...
, making her the first woman to fly a front-line tactical strike aircraft.
During a ship's company assignment, Mariner earned a dual-designation as a Surface Warfare Officer aboard the training aircraft carrier USS ''Lexington'' in 1984, after becoming the first female aviator assigned to an aircraft carrier in 1982.
In 1987, Mariner became the first woman screened for command of an aviation unit in the U.S. Navy.[Navy Personnel Command, Timeline of Women in the US Navy, http://www.public.navy.mil/bupers-npc/organization/bupers/WomensPolicy/Pages/HistoryFirsts.aspx, title=History & Firsts , publisher=Public.navy.mil , date= , accessdate=January 24, 2013] In 1990, she became the first woman to command an aviation squadron
A squadron in air force, army aviation, or naval aviation is a unit comprising a number of military aircraft and their aircrews, usually of the same type, typically with 12 to 24 aircraft, sometimes divided into three or four flights, dependin ...
in the Navy and was selected for major aviation shore command. During Operation Desert Storm
Operation or Operations may refer to:
Arts, entertainment and media
* ''Operation'' (game), a battery-operated board game that challenges dexterity
* Operation (music), a term used in musical set theory
* ''Operations'' (magazine), Multi-Ma ...
, she commanded Tactical Electronic Warfare Squadron Thirty Four (VAQ-34
VAQ-34, callsign ''Flashbacks'', was a Tactical Electronic Warfare Squadron of the U.S. Navy. It was established on 1 March 1983 at the Pacific Missile Test Center, Point Mugu, California, under the Fleet Electronic Warfare Support Group. The squ ...
), flying the EA-7L and A-7E in Fleet training exercises. Mariner was president of the Women Military Aviators, Inc. from 1991 to 1993, helping lead the removal of restrictions on military women flying in combat. In April 1993, when Secretary of Defense Les Aspin
Leslie Aspin Jr. (July 21, 1938 – May 21, 1995) was an American Democratic Party politician who served as the U.S. representative for Wisconsin's 1st congressional district from 1971 to 1993 and as the 18th United States Secretary of Defe ...
removed restrictions on female pilots flying combat missions, Mariner, along with Jane Skiles O'Dea, Commander Lin Hutton, and Naval Reserve Commander Joellen Oslund, was one of the first female aviators selected for promotion to captain in the U.S. Navy.
Mariner's final military assignment was as the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff's Professor of Military Studies at the National War College. She retired after twenty-four years of military service, a veteran of seventeen carrier landings with over 3,500 military flight hours in fifteen different Navy aircraft.
Mariner's career is detailed in several books, including ''Crossed Currents: Navy Women from World War I to Tailhook'', ''Women in the Military: An Unfinished Revolution'', ''Tailspin: Women at War in the Wake of Tailhook'', and ''Ground Zero: The Gender Wars in the Military''.
Retirement
Mariner retired from the Navy with the rank of captain at the end of 1997. She was a resident scholar in the Center for the Study of War and Society and a lecturer in the Department of History from 2002 to 2016 at the University of Tennessee
The University of Tennessee (officially The University of Tennessee, Knoxville; or UT Knoxville; UTK; or UT) is a public land-grant research university in Knoxville, Tennessee. Founded in 1794, two years before Tennessee became the 16th state ...
.[
]
Personal life
Rosemary Mariner lived in Norris, Anderson County, Tennessee with her husband, retired Navy commander Tommy Mariner, and their daughter, Emmalee. Mariner was a Christian, with close friend and fellow pilot Tammie Jo Shults
Tammie Jo Shults (born Bonnell; born November 2, 1961) is an American retired commercial airline captain, author, and former naval aviator. Known for being one of the first female fighter pilots to serve in the United States Navy, following act ...
recounting that Mariner "found her foundation in Christ."
Death
Mariner died on January 24, 2019, in Knoxville, Tennessee at the age of 65, following a five-year battle with ovarian cancer
Ovarian cancer is a cancerous tumor of an ovary. It may originate from the ovary itself or more commonly from communicating nearby structures such as fallopian tubes or the inner lining of the abdomen. The ovary is made up of three different c ...
.
Funeral
Mariner's funeral was held on February 2, 2019, during which the United States Navy conducted an all-female pilot flyover for the first time, performing a four F/A-18F aircraft Missing Man Flyover over New Loyston Cemetery in Maynardville, Tennessee.
Publications
*
*Mariner, Rosemary Bryant (Editor with G. Kurt Piehler), The Atomic Bomb and American Society: New Perspectives, University of Tennessee Press (Knoville, TN: 2008)
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
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External links
The Year in Review (1997)
Naval Aviation News by William T. Baker
from the Naval Historical Center
Study of War & Society – Personnel
University of Tennessee Knoxville
Women Military Aviators
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mariner, Rosemary Bryant
1953 births
2019 deaths
People from Anderson County, Tennessee
People from San Diego
University of Tennessee faculty
United States Navy captains
Female United States Navy officers
Deaths from ovarian cancer
Deaths from cancer in Tennessee
Aviators from Texas
Women United States Naval Aviators
American women academics
21st-century American women
Military personnel from California