Lourie A. DeBoer
A native of Sacramento, California, Chief Warrant Officer 5 Lourie DeBoer graduated from the University of Alaska, Fairbanks with a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering in 1995 and was commissioned as a U.S. Army Warrant Officer in 1997. Designated an Army Aviator in 1998, she reported to A Company, 3-158th Aviation Regiment “Blue Stars” in November of 1998, flying as a UH-60 Blackhawk helicopter assault pilot out of Giebelstadt, Germany. During this assignment, she supported NATO’s Operation Allied Force in Kosovo, and POTUS support in Madrid, Spain.
In 2001, DeBoer joined A Company, 1-159th Aviation Regiment “Blacksheep” out of Fort Bragg, North Carolina. While there she flew in support of Operation Bahamas Turks and Caicos, a multiservice mission aimed at fighting the drug cartels in the Caribbean Basin, flew National Capital Region air security operations for Homeland Defense, and deployed to the combat theater in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom II in 2004 and again in 2005. She served during these combat tours as pilot-in-command for the commanding generals of both the Multi-National Forces-Iraq and the Multi-National Corps-Iraq, and as the only dual-tracked instructor pilot and maintenance test pilot.
In 2006, DeBoer reported to B Company, 2-2 Aviation Regiment “Renegades”, K16, Seoul, South Korea. During her time there she earned a qualification as a Demilitarized Zone pilot-in-command.
In 2007, CW5 DeBoer reported to the Maintenance Test Pilot Course at Fort Rucker, Alabama, and served as both a Maintenance Test Pilot Examiner and as an Instructor Pilot. In 2009, she was selected to be the UH-60 MTPC Track Chief, making her the first woman to hold this position for any MTPC airframe track in the U.S. Army. Prior to her departure in 2010, she completed the flight evaluations to become a Department of Evaluation and Standards Maintenance Examiner Designee.
In 2011, CW5 DeBoer reported to the 1st Cavalry Division in Fort Hood, Texas, and immediately deployed to Sharana, Afghanistan, as the Aviation Maintenance Officer for Task Force Attack, 1-227th Aviation Regiment “First Attack”. After re-deployment she served as the Aviation Maintenance Officer for the 3-227th Assault Helicopter Battalion “Spearhead” and became the 1st Cavalry Brigade Aviation Maintenance Officer (BAMO), making her the first woman to hold a BAMO position in the U.S. Army. She was later by name requested to deploy with the 1st Cavalry Division to RC-South Afghanistan in 2014.
In 2016, CW5 DeBoer completed her MBA in Project Management, was promoted to Chief Warrant Officer 5, and was selected to attend the U.S. Naval Test Pilot School. She graduated in 2018 as an Unrestricted Experimental Test Pilot and reported to the Aviation Flight Test Directorate in Redstone, Alabama to serve in the Army as a Test Pilot and maintenance examiner. While assigned to AFTD, she was the Test Director and test pilot for the UH-60V development, Degraded Visual Environment Pilotage System, UH-60A/L/M improved Upturned Exhaust System, multiple Aircraft Survivability Equipment systems and the Towed Airborne Plume Simulator proof of concept for low airspeed testing. CW5 DeBoer reported back to USNTPS this year to serve as a rotary wing instructor on the UH-60 and UH-72 aircraft,
Her personal decorations include two Bronze Stars, four Meritorious Service Medals, one Air Medal, five Army Commendation Medals, two Army Achievement Medals, two Meritorious Unit Commendations, the National Defense Service Medal, two Afghanistan Campaign Medals, the Iraq Campaign Medal, the Kosovo Campaign Medal, The Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal, The Global War on Terrorism Service Medal, three NATO medals and the Korea Defense Medal.
