From a very young age, Chandra “Mamasan” Newman knew she wanted to be a pilot.
The dream was seemingly created in a vacuum; barring a book report on Naval aviation she wrote in the sixth grade, Newman based her lofty career aspirations on a feeling.
“I guess it was always in the back of my mind, and my parents can’t explain it. I can’t explain it,” she said.
Newman’s reflections come during the 50th anniversary of women flying in the U.S. Navy.
Breaking barriers in 1973
The women who broke through gendered aviation restrictions in 1973 set the stage for Newman, who served as Commanding Officer of Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron FIVE and is currently the Navy’s Director of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) for Commander, Naval Air Forces.
For Newman, the anniversary “provides a lot of opportunity for learning our history and our legacy.”
She added that it’s the “proverbial how far we’ve come compared to, you know, how far we still have to go.”
“The First Six”
Fifty years ago, a group of six women became the first to enter the otherwise male-dominated realm of Naval aviation.
These women, known as “The First Six,” forged a flight path from the traditional auxiliary roles women filled in the Navy’s aviation structure to uniformed service.
The First Six were aided in their pursuit by Admiral Elmo Zumwalt, who “was a very forward thinker and is very known for that from the Navy heritage side,” says Newman.
Before they had Zumwalt’s support in their expansion efforts, uniformed women were restricted to “medical, nursing corps and administrative [work], not … the warfighting side.”
Celebrating the anniversary and the resultant changes in Naval norms and culture is one of the ways Newman creates an optimal environment for those she works with.
For her, using examples like The First Six leads to “recognizing talent and helping that talent rise to the top,” she said.
‘An honor to serve’
On a mid-June morning she leads a tour for The Coronado News on Naval Air Station North Island.
Newman brims with confidence and a sense of pride as about a dozen diverse women at three different locations share their stories of how far the Navy has come to accept them and place them in positions of leadership.
They are pilots, mechanics, and administrators.
One of those is Commander Emily Stellpflug, who is married to a woman and raises a set of foster twins in San Diego.
Stellpflug said there has been a great deal of change since the Clinton-era “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy permitted lesbians, gays and bisexuals to serve in the U.S. military.
She said now the Navy not only embraces women, but also gay women who want to advance in their military careers.
“It’s an honor to serve,” Stellpflug said.
Ascent to the top began at 19
Newman began her own ascent to the top when she was 19.
Upon graduating from Troy University in Troy, Alabama, Newman started training to become a pilot in Pensacola, a Floridian Naval base a little over 400 miles from her hometown of Inverness, Florida.
I have sailed every ocean except for the Arctic, and I’ve stepped on every continent except for Antarctica.”
-Commander Chandra Newman.
In the 22 years since she joined the Navy, Newman is proud to say “that I have sailed every ocean except for the Arctic, and I’ve stepped on every continent except for Antarctica.”
Sly sense of humor
Newman comes from a military family, with her grandfathers all serving as well as her brother, Troy, a retired colonel in the Army.
She also has a sly sense of humor with a nod to history.
Newman said she gave her 125-pound Russian Terrier the name of “Winston” because she thought it would be funny to name a dog whose breed was created during World War II in the old Soviet Union after British Prime Minister Winston Churchill.
Newman also said she also loves to hike, ride horses, quilt and work out.
And Newman’s ongoing Naval tenure has led her to numerous opportunities and appointments.
Origins of “Mamasan”
Her hard work and dedication earned her the call sign “Mamasan,” bestowed upon her when she was leading a deployed unit in the Asia-Pacific region.
You earn call signs for a very outstanding character trait, or perhaps doing something incredibly dumb. Or notable, let’s say, whether it’s in the aircraft or just you know, in life.”
-Chandra “Mamasan” Newman.
“You earn call signs for a very outstanding character trait, or perhaps doing something incredibly dumb. Or notable, let’s say, whether it’s in the aircraft or just you know, in life,” she said.
Across the branches, most pilots earn their call signs at their first operational squadron as a junior officer, if they didn’t receive one earlier, according to the Department of Defense.
After Newman earned her call sign, the junior officers in her squadron reached out to their commanding officer in Guam to officially dub Newman “Mamasan,” a moniker that confers honor in Japanese culture.
Trailblazing officer
Years before earning her call sign and serving all over the world, Newman joined her first squadron as one of two women in a group of 50 officers.
By the time she became a commanding officer, Newman was accompanied in her leadership by a considerably higher number of women.
And Newman is carrying on the legacy of diversity and expansion embodied by The First Six.
She believes that by using “education and exposure,” she is showing people that Naval aviation is an option.
“It’s a way to fulfill a dream,” she said.
