Kelly Flinn

For the Montana politician, see Kelly Flynn.
Kelly Flinn
BornDecember 23, 1970 (1970-12-23) (age 53)
St. Louis, Missouri, U.S.
Allegiance United States of America
Service/branch United States Air Force
Years of service1993–1997
Rank First lieutenant
Other workProud to Be: My Life, the Air Force, the Controversy (book)

Kelly Flinn (whose surname was sometimes misspelled as Flynn; born December 23, 1970) is a former B-52 pilot in the United States Air Force (USAF). She was the first female pilot to serve in that capacity.[1]

She was discharged from the U.S. Air Force in 1997 after an adulterous affair with the husband of an enlisted subordinate, for military offenses including disobeying a direct order from her commanding officer to break off the affair, and for twice lying under oath to investigators about having done so.[2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10][excessive citations]

The scandal received widespread media attention at the time and was discussed in a U.S. Senate hearing on May 22, 1997.[2] Kelly Flinn worked as a commercial pilot for Trans World Airlines after leaving the Air Force.[citation needed]

  1. ^ Dejevsky, Mary (May 19, 1997). "Female B-52 pilot quits over charges of adultery". The Independent on Sunday. London, UK.
  2. ^ a b "End to messy case Kelly Flinn: General discharge for Air Force lieutenant is wise resolution". The Baltimore Sun. May 24, 1997. Retrieved November 20, 2015.
  3. ^ Sciolino, Elaine (May 11, 1997). "From a Love Affair to a Court-Martial". New York Times.
  4. ^ McIntyre, Jamie; Flock, Jeff (May 22, 1997). "Air Force gives pilot a general discharge". CNN.
  5. ^ Mitchell, Brian P. (1998). Women in the military: flirting with disaster. Regnery Publishing. pp. 314–15. ISBN 0-89526-376-9.
  6. ^ Brady, Tim (2000). The American aviation experience: a history. SIU Press. p. 404. ISBN 0-8093-2371-0.
  7. ^ Sciolino, Elaine (December 14, 1997). "Air Force Chief Has Harsh Words for Pilot Facing Adultery Charges". The New York Times.
  8. ^ Ruane, Michael E. (February 22, 1997). "Adultery Charge For Female Pilot First Lt. Kelly J. Flinn Is Accused Of Other Offenses. She's The Air Force's Only Woman Flying B-52s". Philadelphia Inquirer. Archived from the original on November 14, 2013.
  9. ^ "Travis Pilot a No-Show for Hearing/Captain wants to resign after admitting adultery". San Francisco Chronicle. May 16, 1997.
  10. ^ Kempster, Norman (May 22, 1997). "Lying, Not Adultery, Is Female Pilot's Top Crime, AF Says". Los Angeles Times.