First female commanding officer of an aircraft carrier will helm USS Lincoln

Dec. 24 (UPI) -- Capt. Amy Bauernschmidt will assume command of USS Abraham Lincoln, making her the first female commanding officer of an aircraft carrier, the Navy announced this week.

Bauernschmidt will take command of the Lincoln this summer, after she completes training, aviation and leadership training required of aircraft carrier commanding officer.

"I am incredibly honored and humbled to be selected," Bauernschmidt said Wednesday in a Navy press release. "I love leading sailors and I take that responsibility extremely seriously."

A Milwaukee, Wisc., native, Bauernschmidt graduated from the United Stated Naval Academy in May 1994, the first graduating class in which women were allowed to serve aboard combatant ships and aircraft.

She was designated as a naval aviator in 1996 and served with several helicopter squadrons throughout her career, previously commanding the "Spartans" of Helicopter Maritime Strike Squadron and and amphibious transport dock USS San Diego.

Earlier in December Bauernschmidt was the first woman recommended to command an aircraft carrier.

She was also the first woman to serve as the executive officer on an aircraft carrier, which she did from September 2016 to January 2019 -- also on the Lincoln.