Video
Interview by Heidi Gerstmyer
May 1, 2014
Summary
Jane Ballard Dyer was born on November 11, 1957 in Greenville, South Carolina. She served for 7 years in the U.S. Air Force. She also served during the Cold War and achieved the rank of Captain. She was the first female from Clemson to go into Air Force Training.
About Jane Ballard Dyer
Captain Jane Ballard Dyer retired from the Air Force in May 1988 after 7 years of service. In June 1981, after receiving her degree in Mechanical Engineering from Clemson University, she was commissioned as an officer through Air Force ROTC. From there, she was sent to Laughlin Air Force Base, located in Del Rio, Texas, making her the first Clemson woman to attend Air Force Pilot Training. After earing her pilot wings, she went to Dyess Air Force Base in Abilene, Texas where she became a KC-135 Stratotanker Air Refueling Pilot. After this, she went on to become a T-37 Instructor Pilot, teaching others to fly the Cessna T-37 Tweet, a small, economical twin-engined jet trainer plane.
