Women in Aviation International (WAI) has selected three trailblazers as its 2027 inductees for the WAI Pioneer Hall of Fame, according to organization officials.
The honorees will be recognized Feb. 26, 2027, during the 38th Annual Women in Aviation International Conference at the Savannah Convention Center in Savannah, Georgia.
The 2027 inductees include:
- Lt. Kara Spears Hultgreen: The late Naval aviator was the first modern-era combat-qualified female Naval aviator. After combat aircraft positions opened to women in 1993, she flew the EA-6A Prowler and later qualified on the F-14 Tomcat aboard the USS Constellation in 1994. She died in an F-14 accident on Oct. 25, 1994, and her advocacy helped open military combat aviation roles to women across all branches.
- Dorothy S. Cochrane: Cochrane spent nearly 50 years at the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum after joining in 1977 as one of its first female curators. She curated general aviation and women’s aviation history, established the museum’s “We All Fly” gallery in 2022, and led the Military Women Aviators Oral History Initiative before retiring in 2025.
- Cmdr. Susan L. Kilrain, U.S. Navy (ret.): Kilrain is one of only three women to pilot the Space Shuttle and the youngest person to do so. A graduate of the U.S. Naval Test Pilot School with more than 3,000 flight hours across more than 30 aircraft types, she flew STS-83 and STS-94 aboard Columbia, logging nearly 472 hours in space.
“Our international Pioneer Hall of Fame honors women who made remarkable contributions to aviation, as well as open doors for future generations of women who choose aviation as a career,” said Lynda Coffman, WAI CEO.
Established in 1992, the WAI Pioneer Hall of Fame honors women who have made significant contributions as record setters, pioneers, or innovators in aerospace. Inductees now number more than 130.
For more information: WAI.org
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