María Eugenia Etcheverry is a

Uruguayan Air Force The Uruguayan Air Force (, abbreviated FAU) is the air service branch of the Armed Forces of Uruguay. Originally created as part of the National Army of Uruguay, the Air Force was established as a separate branch on December 4, 1953. It is the ...

pioneer and fighter pilot, who currently holds the rank of lieutenant colonel and serves since 2020 as the first aide-de-camp woman to the

President of Uruguay The president of Uruguay (), officially known as the president of the Oriental Republic of Uruguay (), is the head of state and head of government of Uruguay. The president presides over the Cabinet of Uruguay, Council of Ministers, directing ...

. In 2002, Etcheverry and

Carolina Arévalo Carolina may refer to: Geography * The Carolinas, the U.S. states of North and South Carolina ** North Carolina, a U.S. state ** South Carolina, a U.S. state * Province of Carolina, a British province until 1712 * Carolina, Alabama, a town in t ...

became the first two female fighter pilots of

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a considerably smaller portion in the Northern Hemisphere. It can also be described as the southern Subregion#Americas, subregion o ...

, flying Cessna A-37B Dragonfly and FMA IA-58A Pucará respectively. She was also the first female

Major Major most commonly refers to: * Major (rank), a military rank * Academic major, an academic discipline to which an undergraduate student formally commits * People named Major, including given names, surnames, nicknames * Major and minor in musi ...

and the first female Squadron Commander of the

Career

María Eugenia Etcheverry's father was a military pilot, but she wanted to pursue a military career on her own. In 1997, after the

allowed women to join for the first time, María Eugenia Etcheverry was one of the first women to enroll at the Military School of Aeronautics alongside

. At the time, she was required to adhere to rules designed for men, such as short haircuts. After graduating in 2001, and after having flown SF-260EU, she was assigned to the Tte. 2° Mario W. Parallada Air Base in

Santa Bernardina Santa Bernardina is a suburb of Durazno, the capital city of Durazno Department, in central Uruguay. Geography This suburb is located to the north of the city of Durazno, across the river Río Yí Rio or Río is the Portuguese and Spanish word f ...

Durazno Durazno is the capital city of the Durazno Department, department of Durazno in Uruguay. Geography The city is located at the intersection of Route 5 (Uruguay), Routes 5 and 41, in the south of the department, close to the borders with the depar ...

, where she trained in aerobatics and advanced tactical flight, flying Pilatus PC-7U Turbo Trainer. Both Etcheverry and Arévalo both began their active military service in 2001, becoming the first female combat pilots in Latin America. Etcheverry was the first to fly, taking off from the Tte. 2° Mario W. Parallada Air Force Base in a

Cessna A-37 Dragonfly The Cessna A-37 Dragonfly, or Super Tweet, is a jet-powered, light attack aircraft designed and produced by the American aircraft manufacturer Cessna. It was developed during the Vietnam War in response to military interest in new counter-i ...

, followed by Arévalo, flying a FMA IA-58A Pucará. Etcheverry continued to set new firsts for the Uruguayan Air Force, becoming the first woman to lead an air force squadron of sixteen pilots, and the first to become a Major. Both Etcheverry and Arévalo were named Women of the Year by Zonta Punta del Este - Maldonado, for their pioneering work as pilots in the military. When Etcheverry became pregnant, she did not fly for nine months, instead she worked in maintenance tasks of Cessna U-206H Stationair and Beechcraft UB-58 Baron aircraft. As a result of her rise in rank, she has since stopped flying combat missions altogether. In 2020, Etcheverry became the first woman to serve as aide-de-camp to the President of the Republic, while holding the rank of Lieutenant Colonel of the Uruguayan Air Force.

Flight Information

Rating:

Command Pilot U.S. Air Force aeronautical ratings are military aviation skill standards established and awarded by the United States Air Force for commissioned officers participating in "regular and frequent flight",The standard by which flight status has be ...

Aircraft flown: SF-260EU, PC-7U, A-37B, U-206H, UB-58

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Etcheverry, Maria Eugenia Living people Women air force personnel Uruguayan Air Force personnel Uruguayan women 1976 births Women military aviators