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Col. Nicole Malachowski, USAF (Ret.)

First Woman Thunderbird Pilot | Combat Veteran | White House Fellow and Advisor

Nicole Malachowski
Speaker Reel
Virtual Speaker Reel
The Work-Life Balance Myth
Pushing the Envelope
Col.
Nicole Malachowski
Speaker Reel
Virtual Speaker Reel
The Work-Life Balance Myth
Pushing the Envelope

Colonel Nicole Malachowski defies stereotypes. The first woman pilot on the Thunderbirds, a combat veteran, and a White House Fellow, her distinguished 21-year Air Force career exceeded her wildest dreams. But the dream came to a quick end when a devastating tick-borne illness left her struggling to speak or walk for almost nine months. Having faced overwhelming challenges and adversity, Malachowski draws on her storied career and personal experiences to empower audiences to go beyond resilience and become resurgent.

Malachowski was just sixteen years old when she took her first solo flight. While in high school, she joined the Civil Air Patrol and participated in Air Force Junior ROTC. She earned her commission from the United States Air Force Academy in 1996. Over her 21-year Air Force career, Malachowski achieved the rating of Command Pilot with more than 2,300 flight hours in six different Air Force aircraft. She was among the first group of women to fly modern fighter aircraft and was the first women to fly on any Department of Defense military jet demonstration squadron, as part of the USAF Thunderbirds.

As a career pilot, Malachowski served in combat as an F-15E flight commander, evaluator, instructor pilot, and fight lead. She served as a mission-ready fighter pilot in three operational F-15E fighter squadrons and has flown over 188 combat hours, including her proudest moment as a fighter pilot — leading the first fighter formation to provide security for Iraq’s historic democratic elections in 2005.

On the ground, Malachowski was a White House Fellow, class of 2008-2009, where she served on the Presidential Transition Support Team (PTST) while assigned to the US General Services Administration. She was also awarded the 2019 IMPACT Award from the White House Fellows Foundation and Association and, in 2021, was appointed to the President’s Commission on White House Fellowships by President Joe Biden.

Malachowski also served on two high-level staff assignments at the Pentagon, and as the the Executive Director of the White House’s national “Joining Forces” initiative, where she directly advised former First Lady Michelle Obama and Dr. Jill Biden on all topics relating to service members, veterans, and military families.

In recognition of her achievements, Malachowski has been inducted into the National Women’s Hall of Fame and the Women in Aviation International Pioneer Hall of Fame. As she continues to recover from her neurological tick-borne illness, she embraces any opportunity to educate others about her medical journey and this growing epidemic. She is on the Board of Directors at the LivLyme Foundation and is a Patient Advisory Board Member of The Dean Center for Tick Borne Illness.

Speaking topics

Presentations listed below include in-person and virtual keynotes, as well as workshops, fireside chats, and other presentation formats.

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Client reviews

  • Nicole was PHENOMENAL! One of the best speakers we’ve ever had. She was down to earth, had a powerful story and really cared about adjusting her message to fit the audience. If there are ever any groups in the AHA looking for a keynote, I will highly recommend her to them.

  • In my 14 years of working with our conference speakers, I have never had such an immediate flood of positive feedback from our members regarding Nicole’s session. There were just a little over 1,000 people in attendance at the session and they gave her the third highest rating for a keynote speaker in the 92-year history of our Association’s event.

  • Nicole was an absolute homerun. I know her message made a profound and lasting effect on many of my colleagues, including me. Plus, she is just so nice and human. It’s really special. I’m not sure how I will top her for future events!

  • We have been fortunate to have over 30 speakers over the few years present at our sales conference. Based on survey results, your session was the highest ranked ever! You have a great message and more significantly, an incredible way to connect with the audience. I personally loved the way you weaved in our values and our message with your message of Pushing the Envelope.

  • …not only did she receive a standing ovation, but the line of attendees seeking to talk with her after the meeting was the longest I had ever seen at such an event – and she took the time to meet all of them.

  • Most of us will never lead a squadron of F-15E fighter pilots, fly right wing for the USAF Thunderbirds or have our careers transformed as a result of a tick bite. But your storytelling took us there for a brief moment and the lessons they represent — failure and risk are the price of entry for achieving something great; plow your own path; nobody wants to lead a scripted life; etc. — resonate in a way that can change lives, personal and professional. You are one of the most engaging and effective speakers I have come across—a humble force that touches people emotionally. Without question, you presented exactly the message we wanted to share with our elite performers.

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