First Female Tank Crew Member In The U.S. Comes From Boise

History has been made from a Boise woman this week.  Sgt. 1st Class Erin Smith of the Idaho Army National Guard is the first ever female to graduate from the U.S. Army's M1 Armor Crewman School.

What does that mean?  It means she will be part of a crew that will use M1A1 or M1A2 Abram tanks to destroy enemy targets.  In the past, woman have been prohibited from combat roles, including tank members but that has all recently changed.

Smith says...

"It was intimidating at first—the fear of failure or not being good enough—but it's been an awesome experience."

Smith enlisted in the Idaho National Guard as a combat medic in 2001 and has been deployed to Bosnia and Iraq.  More than 280,000 women have deployed to Iraq or Afghanistan over the last ten years.  But only one woman will be in a tank.  And she's from Boise, Idaho.  Congratulations Erin Smith.  We're very proud of you!