Tammy Barlette is a retired United States Air Force Lieutenant Colonel, fighter pilot and unmanned aircraft pilot. She has flown several different planes, accumulating more than 3000 total flying hours.
Tammy spent 20 years in the Air Force. During her aviation career she flew as an instructor in both the T-37 Tweet and the T-38 Talon. She also flew close air support in the mighty A-10 Warthog while stationed at Osan Airbase in South Korea.
After an aircraft injury required cervical spine reconstruction, Tammy transitioned to flying unmanned aircraft, accumulating over 1500 hours of combat support time in the MQ-1 Predator and the MQ-9 Reaper. She became a top leader in the unmanned aircraft community, graduating in the first remotely piloted aircraft (RPA) class from the prestigious US Air Force Weapons School.
Tammy and her husband, a federal agent, reside in Tucson, Arizona with their three children. She retired from the Air Force in 2018, becoming a professional speaker, and also founding Athena’s Voice, a women veteran speaker collective featuring female military pilots with powerful stories to share.