MIDDLEBURY — U.S. Air Force 1st Lt. Genevieve Zasada of Watertown will speak at the Westover School’s commencement ceremony on May 27.
Lt. Zasada attended Westover School and is a graduate of Watertown High School and attended Naugatuck Valley Community College, before earning her BBA at the University of Hawaii with a degree in finance.
Having loved aviation since childhood, she began her aviation career as a flight instructor at Rocky Mountain Flight Training center in Colorado Springs.
The Air National Guard hired and sponsored her to go to officers training school (fall of 2017) to be trained to fly F-16’s.
She earned her pilot’s wings in T-38s at Laughlin AFB in Texas in 2019. She went on to complete her F-16 pilot training at Holloman AFB in New Mexico 2021.
In 2021, Capt. Zasada was deployed as a combat pilot to Iraq and Syria, with the 121st Fighter Squadron in Washington, D.C.
She currently flies the F-16 Viper for the District of Columbia Air National Guard, 113th Wing-Capital Guardians at Andrews Air Force Base and will complete her certification for flight lead in June.
She credits her mentors at Rumsey Hall School, Westover, Watertown High School and beyond for giving her the confidence to go after what she wants in life without compromise, without trepidation.
She supports and mentors young women like herself in pursuing careers in aviation, both military and civilian.
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