The Press and Journal (Inverness, Highlands, and Islands)
Fighter pilot finds sea legs
Retired US navy flyer played cat and mouse with Russian jets
Taking part in dogfights in the Pacific is a long way from helping crew a lifeboat in Dornoch.
But that is just the change one American pilot has made.
Retired captain Ashley Rose trained to fly fighter jets off warships and spent 20 years in the American navy patrolling the world’s oceans.
She played cat and mouse, seeing off Russian fighter pilots in the western Pacific.
But now she is on call for rescues with the Dornoch Firth lifeboat in the waters of the Moray Firth.
Mrs Rose, 64, and her 66-year-old husband Jerry joined the crew of the East Sutherland inshore lifeboat, the Glen Cassley, after they saw a poster in Dornoch appealing for volunteers.
The couple from South Carolina spend summers in the north-east resort playing golf at the Royal Dornoch course.
They regularly face 30ft waves in the 15ft lifeboat.
Mrs Rose said: “Being a crew member on a lifeboat in the North Sea is a world away from landing a jet fighter on an aircraft carrier.
“When I was playing cat and mouse with Russian jets, I never thought I would move on to crewing a lifeboat off Scotland.
“I am privileged to be a member. But it’s not for the fainthearted. People get into trouble in the water in all sorts of weather. You have to be prepared for a call-out any time, day or night. I am honoured to serve with this crew of volunteers. So is Jerry.”
She added: “When you are flying jets, training takes over. Your responses are finely tuned. There is no room for error when you are at the controls of a multi-million-dollar aircraft. There are many parallels with being a crew member on the lifeboat.”
She spent 24 years in the US navy and flew fighter jets for 12.
Crewman Anthony Hope said: “We are delighted to have Ashley. She is a great asset and part of a top crew.”
The lifeboat’s charity volunteers are trying to raise £100,000 to upgrade the boatshed and install water and electricity. They also plan to provide a changing room for the crew.