Her sheer courage and competence enabled Yapp, 41, from Sandakan, Sabah, to become “one of the boys” and to be on par with her male colleagues.

Yapp said she had developed a deep passion for flying fighter jets since her childhood.

“My past experiences include being a fighter pilot for five years from 2003 to 2007. Then followed my appointment as a flight instructor training students to fly Pilatus PC-7 Mk II at the RMAF Training College in Kepala Batas, Penang,” she said.

Yapp was speaking to the media at the recent Media Day held in conjunction with the 59th RMAF Day themed “Kuasa Udara Tonggak Kedaulatan Negara” at the Labuan Air Base.

Yapp said during her 20 years of service in the RMAF, she had flown two types of fighter jets, the MB-339 and MiG-29, and had her share of unforgettable experiences in both aircrafts.

“While flying the MB-339 fighter jet, the engine developed a problem and caught fire, and I had to make a ‘Mayday’ call, where people would give top priority for us to land on the runway.

“Another experience was when I was operating a MiG-29 fighter jet. I was at a very high altitude and suddenly I experienced lack of oxygen and became unconscious for a few seconds, but I managed to press a special button that supplied oxygen to the cockpit,” she said.

For RMAF’s first woman helicopter pilot Lt Col Norhana Abdul Manaf, 43, who hails from Selangor, joining the male-dominated field was the biggest challenge of her life.

“Encouragement and enthusiasm from my family and colleagues helped me a lot to be fearless in flying a helicopter and carrying out RMAF operations,” she said.

She recalled an unforgettable incident while on duty when the helicopter she was flying, with doctors and medical supplies on board, developed technical problems and was stranded in a remote Orang Asli settlement for three days before assistance arrived.