Westchester is proud of Lt. U.S. Navy Lieutenant Margaret Dente of North Salem, pictured above, bottom left, for being part of a U.S. Naval all-female aviator team for the Super Bowl pregame flyover.
Dente, a graduate of North Salem High School, is a graudate of the University of Southern California. She will be onboard an EA-18G Growler electronic warfare aircraft of Electronic Attack Squadron 129 (VAQ-129), the “Vikings”.
Lt. Dente has accumulated 1,300 hours of flight time and was recently deployed operationally on a cruise aboard the aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN-71). Dente’s grandfather was a U.S Marine helicopter during the Vietnam conflict and her father is also a pilot.
“I grew up wanting to fly, just like my grandfather did as a Marine helicopter pilot in Vietnam, and my dad, as a life-long civilian pilot. Being a naval aviator is a realization of that dream,” said Dente.
“Nothing compares to flying jets off an aircraft carrier. I feel so fortunate for the privilege to serve this
country alongside its finest, doing the job I love, with all the amazing friends I have made along the way.”
The all female fly over was to mark the 50th anniversary of the first women who began flight school in Pensacola in 1973.
Flying the two F/A-18F Super Hornets:
- Lt. Arielle Ash, pilot, of Abilene, Texas
- Lt. Saree Moreno, weapon systems officer, of Tampa, Fla.
- Lt. Naomi Ngalle, weapon systems officer, of Springfield, Va.
- Lt. Caitie Perkowski, pilot, of Albuquerque
Flying the EA 18G Growler:
- Lt. Margaret Dente, pilot, of North Salem, N.Y.
- Lt. Lyndsay Evans, electronic warfare officer, of Palmdale
Flying the F-35C Lightning II:
- Lt. Suzelle Thomas, pilot, of Birmingham, Ala.
