Yael Rom

Yael Rom

Yael Rom(Hebrew:יעל רום;1932–2006), bornYael Finkelstein,was one of the first female pilots of theIsraeli Air Forceand the first trained and certified by the force. She was co-pilot of the leadC-47at the parachute drop at theMitla Passwhich launched the1956 Suez War.

Biography

Military career

Although often referred to as the IAF's first female pilot,this was not the case.Rom was among the first women trained and certified by the force and the only one to go on to active service.

Born inTel Avivin 1932, Rom graduated high school in 1950 and was soon drafted into theIsrael Defense ForcesYouth Corps.Along with 29 other members of the corps she passed the IAF pilot examinations and along with six other cadets continued on to the basicpilot's course,alongsideRina LevinsonandRuth Bokbinder,finishing second in her class. Initially trained on theStearman Kaydet,Rom went on to fly twin-engined aircraft and was certified as a flight instructor. Rom received her wings on December 27, 1951, graduating the IAF's 5th flying course.She was then transferred back to the Youth Corps to instruct future cadets. For six months she petitioned the IDF to return to the air force, meeting with considerable resistance, before her request was finally granted. In 1953 Rom joined the ranks of the103rd "Flying Elephants" Squadron,flying the DouglasC-47 Dakota.

After her discharge from the IDF, Rom continued to fly as a reserve pilot. She was called up in October 1956 to participate inOperation Machbesh(Press), the Israeli parachute drop that launched the Suez War.Rom was the co-pilot of the lead C-47 in the 16-ship formation which dropped Israeli paratroops at theMitla Pass.She spent the rest of the war shuttling supplies to the troops in theSinaiand evacuating the wounded. Rom was on board the first aircraft to land atSharm el-Sheikafter its capture by Israeli forces,and dropped paratroops atEl-Toron November 3.

Rom retired from reserve service in 1962 after the birth of her first daughter, although she had initially failed to report the birth in order to evade the IDF policy of discharging mothers.

Civilian career

Rom graduated from theHebrew UniversityinJerusalemwith a degree in history and political science, as well as a teacher's certificate.In 1957 she was invited to joinArkia Airlines,working as a first officer for three years.Between 1960 and 1982 she worked for theTechnion Institute of Technologyin educational research, consultation and administration. She initiated and developed a unit providing academic support for under-represented groups such as minorities and the handicapped.Later in life she initiated and developedORT's "Young Women in the 21st Century" program which encourages young women to pursue careers in engineering.

In 1974 Rom established the Women's Council of theHaifamayor's office. Although a longtime member of theLikud,in 1983she ran for the post of mayor of Haifa at the head of an independent list, coming in second with 17.9 percent of the vote.

Rom, a mother of three, was married toYosef Rom,a professor ofaeronauticsat the Technion and a formerLikudmember of theKnesset.She died in Haifa on May 24, 2006.On May 26, 2008, the city ofPetah Tikvanamed a local street in her honor, in a ceremony attended by family and members of 103 Squadron.

See also

• Roni Zuckerman

External links

• Tomer Levi (May 26, 2006).מתה יעל רום, הטייסת הראשונה של חיל האוויר[Dies Yael Rom, first female pilot of the Air Force].Haaretz(in Hebrew).RetrievedSeptember 1,2014.
• Josh Brannan (May 26, 2006)."IAF's first woman pilot dies".The Jerusalem Post.RetrievedSeptember 1,2014.