Captain Tammie Jo Shults (US Navy, Ret.) joins the podcast. Tammie Jo was a Naval Aviator from 1985-1993 (active duty) and until 2001 in the reserves. During her naval career, Tammie Jo earned her wings in the T-34, then as a flight instructor for the T-2 Buckeye, later qualifying in A-7 Corsair II and EA-6B Prowler and eventually becoming one of the first female naval aviators to qualify in the F/A-18 Hornet.

After retiring from the Navy, Tammie became a pilot for Southwest Airlines, where she flew the 737 until her retirement in 2020. On Flight 1380, from New York to Dallas in 2018, an engine fan blade failed and led to fuselage damage and rapid decompression at 32,000 feet. Due to Tammie’s (along with first officer Darren Lee Ellisor) calm, steady and heroic actions, the flight was able to make an emergency landing in Philadelphia. For her actions, Tammie was recognized by Congressional resolution and visited the White House to meet with then-President Trump.

Tammie wrote a memoir of her life as an aviator, Nerves of Steel , which can be purchased anywhere you buy books. She also volunteers as a pilot (along with her husband, fellow retired Naval Aviator, Dean) with Angel Flight, a group dedicated to providing free transport to those with special medical needs where treatment is not available to them locally.

Find out more about Tammie and order her book at her website:
https://www.captainshults.com/

Learn more about, and get involved with Angel Flights at:
https://www.angelflightsc.org

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