Del. Guard gets first female general officer - Air Force News | News from Afghanistan & Iraq - Air Force Times

Del. Guard gets first female general officer

It takes more time these days to get into New Castle Airport, where Carol Timmons became Delaware Air National Guard’s first female general Saturday.

The reason? Tightened security since Osama bin Laden’s death.

It’s not the first time bin Laden impacted Timmons’ life. On 9/11, Timmons was co-pilot of a United Airlines plane that many said was to be the fifth seized by hijackers.

Two years later, in 2003, Timmons led a Delaware Air National Guard deployment to Saudi Arabia and flew combat missions in the Iraq War, as America opened a decade-long attempt to settle the score for 9/11.

In 2008, Timmons earned a Bronze Star while commanding a combat deployment to Afghanistan.

Now, the 53-year-old who lives just north of Rehoboth Beach will be in charge of Guard troops from Delaware who could be called to fight Islamic terrorists across the globe.

At Timmons’ promotion ceremony Saturday, as much time was spent talking about her gender as her decorated career. She’s OK with that.

“It’s not what I lead with, and it’s not why I’m here today,” Timmons said. “But it is important. Those barriers were there and they took decades to be removed. Isn’t it great that there are 20-year-old women here who don’t know any better?”

Maj. Gen. Frank Vavala, Delaware National Guard’s adjutant general, said Timmons’ promotion is historic.

“She’s a trendsetter, a role model and certainly a champion of change,” Vavala said. “Many more will follow Carol in the name of equality, fairness and opportunity in our institution. We have all won, and, more importantly, we have made a statement about the future of the Delaware Air National Guard.”

In a vast hangar with a huge American flag as a backdrop, Timmons had her pinning on ceremony. She briefly held the one-star general’s flag that was unveiled.

Timmons did her best to deflect the praise directed at her during the one-hour event.

“The word ‘first’ has been thrown around quite a bit today,” she said. “ ‘First’ to me means just timing and tenacity.”