Tammie Jo Shults grew up wanting to be a pilot. She worked hard but faced many obstacles and challenges along the way that threatened her dreams. Doing the next right thing kept her spirit alive as she persevered to find her special calling—to serve God and the world around her. Tammie Jo’s path eventually led her to join the navy, where she became one of the first women to fly the F/A-18 Hornet. Her specialized flight training in fighter aircraft honed her skills to a razor’s edge. After her term in the military, she went to work for Southwest Airlines flying Boeing 737s. Years later, those lessons served her well as she was put in the right place at the right time to safely land a crippled plane and save 148 lives.
Nerves of Steel (Young Readers Edition)
This memoir of hope and perseverance tells Tammie Jo’s story from her days of growing up on a New Mexico ranch to the disaster of Flight 1380 with plenty of action, dogfights, and grace.
Captain Tammie Jo Shults is a Southwest Airlines captain and former naval aviator who received wide acclaim when, on April 17, 2018, she and her crew successfully landed a Boeing 737 after catastrophic engine failure and rapid decompression, saving the lives of 148 people. Shults’s early interest in flying led her to become one of the first female F/A-18 Hornet pilots in the United States Navy after overcoming several obstacles due to her gender. At the conclusion of her Navy career, Shults became a pilot for Southwest Airlines. Her incredible talent and notable history have made her an inspiration to many.