Medic receives flight training position Published Aug. 26, 2014 By Steve Pivnick 81st Medical Group Public Affairs KEESLER AIR FORCE BASE, Miss. -- Capt. Jacqueline Brooks is eagerly awaiting Oct. 17, the date she reports to flight training at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio. The eight-week flight school is preceded by two days of water survival training at Fairchild AFB, Washington and a week-long stint at Lackland AFB, Texas, for survival, evasion, resistance and escape instruction. Brooks, a native of Clarksville, Tennessee is a pulmonary nurse with the 81st Medical Operations Squadron and has been a member of the Air Force for more than four years. She began her quest for the flight training position when she submitted her application in November 2013. She was notified of her selection in February 2014. "The hardest part of the process was passing the flight physical," she said. "They are very selective. I was concerned because I've had a pin in my leg since I was 12. But I played college basketball (at Tennessee State University) and completed the Air Force Marathon, so I didn't believe this would be an issue. Once you've been certified, you're half way there." When Brooks received word that she had been selected, she didn't know how to feel, she said. "It's hard to describe," Brooks said, "I was excited and overwhelmed at the same time. I'm really excited and ready to go." Brooks desire to become a flight nurse was a chance to provide patient care. "I've heard this is one of the most amazing and rewarding opportunities in the Air Force." She is now looking forward to gaining her wings and flying aeromedical evacuation missions.