Pilot Tammie Jo Shults was one of the first female fighter pilots in the US Navy in 1993. After leaving the Navy she joined SouthWest as a commercial airline pilot.
Today, she was labeled an American hero after she calmly and successfully landed a passenger jet as an engine exploded mid-flight. Earlier in the week Southwest Airlines Flight 130 was flying from New York to Dallas when the left engine suddenly exploded, shattering a window which led to a passenger being partially sucked out of the plane. 
Despite the chaos that erupted in the main cabin, an audio recording shows a composed and calm Shults request medical assistance from air traffic control (listen below). She managed to make a successful emergency landing with 149 passengers on board. Passengers quickly praised the pilot for her courageous and swift thinking. Diana McBride Self, who was aboard the flight, took to Facebook to label Shults as a “true American Hero” before adding "A huge thank you for her knowledge, guidance, and bravery in a traumatic situation. God bless her and all the crew”. Another passenger, Amanda Bourman, posted on Instagram "The pilot Tammy [sic] Jo was so amazing! She landed us safely in Philly...God sent his angels to watch over us."
