[BITList] R.A.F.: RED ARROWS - JUST ONE OF THE "BOYS" !!! DAILY MAIL

[John Feltham]

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Friday, Nov 13 2009 This Morning  9°C   This Afternoon 12°C   5-Day Forecast
Just one of the boys: Red Arrows display team unveils its first ever woman pilot





By Fay Schlesinger







13th November 2009




She is the first woman to join the Red Arrows in its 45-year history. 

And now, after five weeks of training, Flight Lieutenant Kirsty Moore can proudly boast she's the fastest redhead in the sky. 





The 32-year-old spoke of her pride for the first time yesterday since joining the prestigious display team, which puts on between 80 and 90 shows across the world every year. 





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Flight Lieutenant Kirsty Moore, the first woman pilot to join the Red Arrows, smiles at RAF Scampton, Lincolnshire, this afternoon






Team effort: Flt Lt Moore's plane, circled, takes to the skies above Lincolnshire for an exercise





'It was one of the best days of my life when I was told that I had been selected to join the team,' she said. 





'I love the fact I'm the first girl - but then somebody was going to do it sooner or later.' 





Asked about her fellow Red Arrows at RAF Scampton in Lincolnshire, she said: 'It's all good fun. 





'But there're no jokes about me being a girl. They're a lot cleverer than that.' 

Flight Lieutenant Moore revealed how her high-flying achievements have come at the expense of her private life. 





Despite marrying fellow RAF fast jet pilot Nicky Moore, 34, nearly five years ago, she revealed the pair have never been able to live under the same roof.






High-flier: Kirsty Moore with the Red 3 display plane





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What goes up: The Red Arrows go through their paces with Flt Lt Moore taking up her place in the formation second from the right in both pictures



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Flight Lieutenant Kirsty Moore signals from the cockpit of her aircraft





Flight Lieutenant Moore, who met her husband, an instructor at RAF Valley in Anglesey, Wales, during pilot training, said: 'We've always been based at opposite sides of the country. 





'I have a three-and-a-half hour drive to see him at weekends. 





'But we almost have a better relationship because of it. We make sure that we have a good time rather than worrying about trivial things. 





'We have to value the time that we have together. There's no rivalry between us. We respect each other.' 





Flight Lieutenant Moore will begin flying with the nine-member Red Arrows as Red 3 next year for a three-year stint.





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Head girl: (From the left) Flt Lt Ben Plank, Flight Lieutenant Kirsty Moore, Flt Lt Zane Sennett, Sqn Ldr Ben Murphy and Flt Lt Dave Davies (hidden)




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Flight Lieutenant Moore and her squadron train in their Hawk aircraft at the Royal Air Force base at Scampton



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Centre of attention: Flt Lt Kirsty Moore speaks to the media in front of a Hawk aircraft at RAF Scampton





She will also don the team's distinctive red flying overalls in 2012 as part of a display for the London Olympics' opening ceremony. 





The fast jet pilot also revealed how she was inspired to join the RAF by her father, Squadron Leader Robbie Stewart, who served as a Tornado navigator. 





'Dad is amazingly proud of me,' she said. 'So is my mum. They live near the base and sometimes pop outside to watch us practising.' 





Earlier this year, Flight Lieutenant Moore beat more than 30 male applicants to win a place with the Red Arrows, along with Flight Lieutenant Ben Plank, 34. 





Although she is not the first woman to apply to join the team, she is the only one to make it through the rigorous selection process. 




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Chocks away: Flt Lt Moore climbs out of her Hawk aircraft as an RAF ground crewman looks on







Flt Lt Moore said she had been subject to some banter from her male colleagues but was not aware of any jokes about women drivers going around





All applicants to the Red Arrows must have 'above average' flying skills, a minimum of 1,500 hours in the cockpit and at least one frontline operational tour in fast jets. 





Squadron Leader Ben Murphy said: 'Kirsty is a classic example of how far you can get. She is an ambassador to other girls to be fast jet pilots. 





'It is a milestone for the Red Arrows but, that said, we do have female aircrew in all our squadrons and this is a great way of getting the message across to women thinking of joining the Red Arrows.




'She is very calm under pressure but Red Arrow pilots also have to be able to do the job on the ground as well as the flying job and she has a very calm and level-headed approach.'





 
Sqn Ldr Murphy, who takes over as Red One this year - the leader of the nine-man team - said Flt Lt Moore was picked for her calm personality as well as her skills as a pilot



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leading edge: The first woman pilot to join the Red Arrows Kirsty Moore stands by her Hawk aircraft



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The Red Arrows go through one of their aerobatic displays as Flight Lieutenant Kirsty Moore takes to the air for the media



 





ooroo

Bad typists of the word, untie.




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