Noemi Schweighöfer
Noemi Anneliese Schweighöfer | |
|---|---|
 Schweighöfer in 2019 | |
| Born | 28 February 1988 Veljestad, Steiermark, Acrea |
| Allegiance |  Acrea |
| Service/ | Royal Acrean Air Force |
| Years of service | 2007-Present |
| Rank | Oberstleutnant |
| Unit | Jagdgeschwader 62 |
| Battles/wars | Zemplen War |
| Awards | see below |
Noemi Anneliese "Maestra" Schweighöfer is an Acrean officer and pilot best known for being a flying ace of the Zemplen War. Flying with Jagdgeschwader 62, she participated in numerous engagements, during which she was credited with shooting down 6 Syaran aircraft. In addition to being a flying ace, she is well known as the first Acrean female ace, and is one of the youngest fighter pilot in Acrean service to be credited with a kill, being tied with Eracuran Great War ace Erich Sjöstedt, having achieved part of her tally at the age of 21.
Early life
Schweighöfer was born on 28 July 1987, in a hospital on Veljestad Air Station to Amalie Schweighöfer, a nurse, and RAAF Lieutenant General Mads Schweighöfer. Raised alongside two brothers in a military household, Schweighöfer participated extensively in aviation-related activities in her youth under the influence of her father. She joined a gliding club at the age of 11, and earned a civilian student pilot's license at the age of 15.
Military service
Schweighöfer applied for and was accepted into the Royal Air Force Academy at 16. She entered the Academy at a time when the Acrean Air Force was facing a shortage of pilots as a whole, and so academy-specific tracks to develop potential candidates earlier had become commonplace at both the Air Force and the Naval academies. As a result, with her aptitude and prior experience, Schweighöfer was selected to be part of this program and was fast-tracked into a pilot slot, and began the first phase of pilot training (SPA) in March 2007. After selecting the fighter/attack track, she completed the program in March 2008. She graduated from the academy in May of the same year and commissioned as a Captain due to having been granted her wings. She completed individual fighter training (IJFT) later that month.
Only a couple weeks after graduating, Schweighöfer began advanced weapons school (AWS) at Vadsø Air Station, assigned to the 103rd Training Squadron. Upon completing advanced weapons school, Schweighöfer had second choice during assignment selection for her class and selected an opening to fly an EF 135 Draken at Jagdgeschwader 62 based in Stavanger. She was assigned her callsign "Maestra" at the squadron.
Schweighöfer joined the squadron in late August 2008, with the original intention being for her to fly an EF 135 Tranche III. She was assigned the aircraft number 62-14. She would serve as the wingman for Major Mikael Kjellström. Her time in the Draken in an operational squadron would be incredibly short lived, however, as JG 62 had been selected as one of three squadrons who would the first to receive new EF 662 Vampyr fighters several months prior. This caused some concern for Schweighöfer's career in the squadron. As a still-new pilot, she otherwise would not have been accepted to train and qualify on the new aircraft. The decision was ultimately made to retain her in the squadron. The unit began the basic course for the aircraft in November 2008, and assumed delivery of the new aircraft in December 2008.
Zemplen War
JG 62 was deployed in support of Acrean Forces Ruvelka prior to the arrival of ground troops, arriving in Ruvelka in March 2009 along with JG 57, an EF 135 squadron tasked with training Ruvelkan pilots on the airframe. The squadron entered combat almost immediately, being deployed primarily in the airspace above Army Group Centre where the highest concentration of fighting was taking place. Ruvelkan command saw the Tritons as a valuable asset, and determined that they would provide a distinct edge in the air war in that region.
Her first credited kill came on 16 June 2009. Schweighöfer's flight was vectored towards a flight of four Zephyr fighters, which had been picked up by Ruvelkan ground radar. Remaining undetected by the Syaran aircraft, each pilot was assigned a target, after which they simultaneously fired. Two of the missiles were successfully evaded, however two found their targets. Schweighöfer's first hit, striking the Zephyr piloted by Lt. Colonel Libarid Hovnatanian. The second kill was scored by flight lead Colonel Thor Neuer. The remaining Syaran aircraft subsequently withdrew from the airspace. The engagement made Schweighöfer the first Acrean pilot to shoot down a Zephyr.
The squadron participated primarily in routine combat air patrols over the next several months, serving as an intercept force and a deterrent in areas where CAF activity was particularly heavy. Over this period, Schweighöfer was credited with another four kills:
- AFGSF-5 Tartaruga, piloted by Senior Lieutenant Nikodemos Sarlo on 29 August 2009
- Ceyx, piloted by Captain Gero Krasimirov Strashilov on 3 December 2009
- Zephyr, piloted by Captain Miko Stojković on 9 January 2010
- Strix, piloted by Captain Ilarion Atsev on 14 March 2010
Her final credited kill came during Operation Homefront, on 8 July 2010. While providing escort for a strike group of Ruvelkan AFASF-10s and AFSF-9s, the strike group was engaged by several Syaran fighters. Flying above the strike group and using them for radar cover, Schweighöfer's four-ship engaged. After a short period of maneuvering, Schweighöfer fired a short-range missile and struck the Zephyr of Major Zoran Pašalić, shearing the rear fuselage off the aircraft and securing her fifth and final kill of the war, 11 days before the war ended.