Data delineate IAF's newest pilots
Dozens are to graduate from IAF flight academy this week – including army's
first female religious combat navigator

Yoav Zitun YNET Published: 12.22.12, 21:29 / Israel News
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4323124,00.html

Dozens of new pilots are set to graduate from the Israeli Air Force's flight
academy this week.

Four female pilots and aircrew members are among the graduates, including
the IAF's first religious female combat navigator. According to details
released by the IDF on Saturday, 16% of the graduating pilots define
themselves as traditionalist or religious.

The data further shows that first-borns make up 48% of the graduating class,
while 35% are middle children and 17% are the youngest siblings in their
families.

Thirty-four percent of the newly-minted pilots' moms are teachers, while 13%
of their fathers are doctors. A similar percentage of the fathers are
farmers, and a total of 21% of the parents are self-employed. Seven percent
of the graduates have a family member in the IAF.

According to the data, 13% of the pilots are immigrants.

The demographic breakdown further shows that 37% of the new grads live in
cities, while 26% come from moshavim, 24% hail from communal towns and only
13% are members of a Kibbutz. Moreover, 63% come from the center of the
country, 26% come from the north and 10% are from the south. Most of the
grads are 21 years old, with the oldest in the group being 25.

The majority of the new pilots – 74% - belonged to a youth movement, like
the Israeli scouts movement. About a third – 34% - deferred their army
service for year in order to volunteer.

During the academic phase of the prestigious course, 42% of the graduating
class completed degrees in IT management, while 37% studied finance and
management and 18% studied politics. Only 3% studied computer science.

The new pilots' hobbies are varied. One of them is an accomplished pianist;
two are members of the same band. Two others are rock climbers and one was a
member of Israel's ski team. Over 70% are athletes. Of them, 21% jog, 18%
play basketball, 13% prefer soccer and 10% ride bikes.