February's Veteran Of The Month: Nikki Jansen

Capt. Nikki Jansen grew up in Plymouth, Minn. and attended Wayzata High School. She was nominated to the United States Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colo. by Sen. Jim Ramstad, and was accepted to attend in June 2002. She graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in May 2006 and started pilot training in 2007.

She completed her pilot training at Laughlin Air Force Base in Texas and went on to become a pilot instructor there for three years. She then trained on the B-1 Lancer at Dyess Air Force Base, also in Texas. Jansen then transferred to Ellsworth Air Force Base in Rapid City, S.D. after her training.

She is a member of the 34th Bomb Squadron, nicknamed the "Thunderbirds," which is the same squadron of the famous Doolittle Raid of WWII - the first U.S. air retaliation attack after Pearl Harbor.

Capt. Jansen anticipates she will be deployed to Southwest Asia in the next few months to provide air support for our ground troops.