Last Hover: Valérie André World’s first female helicopter rescue pilot broke barriers to become a military pilot and neurosurgeon. Valérie André, the first woman to achieve the rank of brigadier general in the French military during an armed forces career that saw her deployed as a doctor, parachutist, and helicopter pilot, died Jan. 21, 2025. She was 102. André’s destiny as a pilot was set at the age of 10, when she met acclaimed pilot Maryse Hilsz. Hilsz had just completed a nearly 13,000-mile journey from Paris, France, to Saigon, Vietnam, and back. André regularly visited the Strasbourg aerodrome after that, eventually taking her first fixed-wing flight lessons at 17 years of age in summer 1939. After graduating from medical school in 1947, André enlisted in the French Military Medical Corps and volunteered to serve in French Indochina as a doctor. Following helicopter flight training in France, André flew her first of 129 rescue missions in Vietnam on Jan. 22, 1951, earning the respect of all who served with her. She went on to serve in Algeria as both a medical rescue and troop transport pilot and chief medical officer for the Reghaïa air base near Algiers. By this time, she had graduated to flying the more sophisticated Sikorsky H-34 and Sud Aviation Alouette II. When she returned to France in 1962, André continued serving in the French Army as a medical officer assigned to air bases throughout the country. André, who received numerous commendations and medals of honor for her service, remained in the French Army, rising to the rank of colonel in 1970 and a brigadier general in 1975—the first woman to achieve the rank in the French military. In 1982, André was promoted to medical inspector general. During her career, André lobbied for gender equality for women pursuing military medical careers. As a result of her efforts, women now represent over half the medical corps’ personnel. Images: Valérie André Photo. Used with permission.
