Veteran combat pilot Özlem İyidilli Karapınar has made history after becoming the first woman to be promoted to the rank of general in the Turkish Air Force.
Colonel Karapınar was elevated to brigadier general following the annual meeting of Türkiye’s Supreme Military Council, known by its Turkish initials YAŞ, at the Presidential Complex in Ankara on Tuesday, 4 August.
The promotion represents a landmark moment for women in the Turkish Armed Forces and crowns a distinguished military career spanning almost three decades.
Karapınar was among 69 colonels promoted to the rank of general or admiral during the meeting, which was chaired by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. A further 25 generals and admirals were elevated to higher ranks. The decisions will formally take effect on 30 August, when Türkiye celebrates Victory Day.
Born in Şaban village, Uşak province, in 1977, Özlem İyidilli Karapınar initially appeared destined for a very different career.
Karapınar accepted the invitation and successfully completed preliminary flight training in Yalova before passing the academy’s demanding selection process.
She graduated from the Turkish Air Force Academy as a lieutenant in 1997 and went on to serve for many years as a combat pilot, steadily rising through the officer ranks and assuming a succession of senior responsibilities.
Her promotion to brigadier general makes her the first woman in the history of the Turkish Air Force to enter its general officer ranks, breaking through one of the most significant remaining barriers for women serving in the force.
Karapınar is not the first woman in Türkiye to hold an equivalent senior military or security rank. In 2022, Özlem Yılmaz (pictured below) became the country’s first female brigadier general following her promotion within the Gendarmerie, which operates under the Interior Ministry.
Özlem Yılmaz, Türkiye's first first female brigadier general, pictured here in March 2024. Photo © AA
A year later, Gökçen Fırat became the Turkish Navy’s first female admiral when she was promoted to rear admiral. Karapınar’s achievement now ensures that women have also reached the highest command levels of the Turkish Air Force.
Türkiye already holds an important place in the history of women’s military aviation through Sabiha Gökçen, the adopted daughter of the Republic’s founder Mustafa Kemal Atatürk. Gökçen trained as a military pilot during the 1930s and is widely regarded as one of the world’s earliest female combat pilots.
Nearly a century later, Karapınar’s promotion marks another important chapter in that story, demonstrating how far women have progressed from entering military aviation to occupying senior leadership positions within the Turkish Air Force.
The daughter of teacher Mehmet Emin İyidilli and the second child in her family, Karapınar is married and has one child. Her journey from a prospective medical student to an accomplished combat pilot and brigadier general is likely to inspire a new generation of girls and young women considering careers in aviation and the armed forces.
Among the other notable decisions announced following the YAŞ meeting was the promotion of Türkiye’s first astronaut, Air Force Colonel Alper Gezeravcı, to brigadier general. General Rafet Dalkıran was also appointed as the new commander of the Turkish Air Force.
For Brigadier General Özlem İyidilli Karapınar, however, the promotion carries significance far beyond her new rank: it places her permanently in the history books as the woman who broke the Turkish Air Force’s highest glass ceiling.
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