Capt. Rebecca Lobach should be remembered for her love of country, how she encouraged others, and for the skill and determination she brought to life, friends said Sunday.

Lobach “was brilliant and fearless,” a fellow UNC ROTC alum wrote Saturday on X (formerly Twitter).

Davis Winkie, a White House reporter for USA Today who previously wrote for the Military Times, recalled training with Lobach and the down times that took them to Linda’s bar in downtown Chapel Hill for trivia nights. They stayed in touch after her commission as a Black Hawk pilot, he said.

“I wish we’d taken a photo together when we had lunch a year ago. I wish I’d remembered to invite her to a party I hosted a week ago. I wish she weren’t dead,” Winkie wrote. “You are so missed, Rebecca. This world won’t be the same without you.”

Lobach was one of three Army soldiers killed Wednesday when their Black Hawk helicopter crashed into an American Airlines flight near Reagan National Airport in Washington, D.C. Both aircraft fell into the Potomac River, killing 64 more people aboard the plane.

While an official cause is still under investigation, friends and a former Black Hawk pilot told The News & Observer on Sunday that Lobach had the skills and the talent to be exceptional.

Basketball player with ambition to fly

Growing up in Rougemont in northern Durham County, Lobach was an athlete, playing basketball for the Durham Flight Home School team from 2012-14 and serving as the team’s captain in her senior year.

In 2015, she enrolled in The University of the South in Sewanee, Tennessee, where she continued to play basketball and served as a freshman senator in the university’s student government. She loved watching the movie “Freaky Friday,” Lobach posted in 2015 on the Sewanee student government Facebook page.

“My family watched it religiously when I was growing up,” she wrote. “Could probably quote the whole thing at gunpoint.”

Two years later, she transferred to UNC-Chapel Hill and joined the ROTC program. In 2018, Army Capt. Bilal Kordab recruited her to sign up with the N.C. National Guard, where she worked part-time and earned a stipend.

Lobach never said why she wanted to be a pilot, but Kordab said he was impressed with her kindness and her ambition and dedication. She planned to study medicine and work as a physician after her military service, he said.

“She could have easily accomplished that,” Kordab said. “In order to become an Army pilot, you have to go through a lot of scrutiny. You have to hit a lot of benchmarks. You have to be super qualified. This is not something you just get handed.”

Facebook photos on the UNC Army ROTC page show her broad smile, even in the midst of training exercises. In one post, someone remarks on her “totally owning” a hand grenade assault course, and another shows her “conquering the obstacle course.”

She was “a true Carolina girl,” her friend, 2nd Lt. Lexi Freas said Sunday.

A mentor, a ‘PT stud,’ and a friend

Lobach was a warrior, and “graceful as she was fierce,” her family said Saturday in a statement.

“She was a daughter, sister, partner and friend. She was a servant, a caregiver, an advocate. Most of all, she loved and was loved. Her life was short, but she made a difference in the lives of all who knew her, the statement said.

Lt. Samantha Brown was a sophomore when she met Lobach at ROTC orientation on UNC’s campus. They became “fast friends,” said Brown, who is now assigned to a Special Operations Command unit.

Lobach had a “calling to serve” her nation, Brown said. She recalled long nights studying in the library or the ROTC armory, and a music playlist they listened to called “1776.”

“We put it on the in the gym. We put it on at parties. She called it ‘1776’ because she was proud of her country,” Brown said.

More than one friend called Lobach “a PT stud.”

“She could sling weight like nobody else, and she was just a beacon of leadership,” said Freas, who will start pilot school in April. “She was so dependable and compassionate.”

Outside of the gym and military training, Lobach liked to bake for herself and others, friends said. She helped edit research papers and craft resumes and cover letters for friends seeking a job. And she encouraged fellow ROTC cadets to pursue their dreams, they said.

Freas recalled how Lobach took the initiative about two years ago to invite her and other interested ROTC cadets to Washington, D.C., giving them the opportunity to fly with her and another pilot.

For Freas, the experience was “life-changing,” because it inspired her to join the D.C. Army National Guard and pursue a career as a Black Hawk pilot. Lobach helped her prep for the pilot school interview process, she said.

Lobach was “so excited to share something she was so passionate about,” she said.

“If she didn’t take me up to D.C. and take me flying, I don’t know if I would have pursued aviation as hard as I did,” Freas said. “I wouldn’t be in the D.C. Guard if it wasn’t for her, so she’s just a pivotal person in my entire career and personal and professional development.”

Earning her rank with honors

In 2019, Lobach became an Army aviation officer before graduating from UNC with the title of “distinguished military graduate,” putting put her among the top 20% of ROTC cadets who graduated that year in the United States, Freas said.

Lobach completed the Army ROTC course in two years, instead of the typical four-year journey, and earned a biology degree. The ROTC program prepares cadets to serve as officers in the Army, Army Reserve and Army National Guard, and the Tar Heel Battalion has received several MacArthur Awards, an honor that goes to only eight programs each year.

Lobach qualified to be a pilot after graduating flight school with the rank of second lieutenant — a commissioned officer — and rose to the rank of captain over her six years with the Army. She was extremely qualified to fly a Black Hawk, Freas and others said.

“It’s a testament to how amazing and frankly bad-ass she was. She never let being a woman get in the way of achieving her dreams. ... She worked just as hard as everybody else,” Freas said, while emphasizing that she does not speak for the Army or the National Guard.

“Rebecca wanted to serve the country. She was more than willing and ready to go into combat if the country called her to,” Freas said. “She was excited to defend the United States. That’s who she was.“

Lobach earned her pilot-in-command certification after 450 hours of flight time and extensive testing. She served twice as a platoon leader in the 12th Aviation Battalion, Davison Army Airfield in Fort Belvoir, Virginia, the Army reported.

In addition, she was a victim advocate with the Army’s Sexual Harassment/Assault Response and Prevention program, her family said, and also served as a White House military social aide during the Biden administration. It was a role that had her supporting the president and first lady at White House events, including Medal of Honor and Presidential Medal of Freedom ceremonies.

Lobach herself had received a number of awards, the Army said, including the Army Commendation Medal, Army Achievement Medal, National Defense Service Medal and Army Service Ribbon.

Women finding place in military, ROTC

Women have served as pilots in the U.S. Army since the 1970s, but only a small number fly Black Hawks, and they’ve only been flying in support of combat operations since 1994. The Army reported in 2023 that nearly 6% of its helicopter pilots were female.

“Every single female pilot I knew then and I know now is actually held to a higher standard — unconscious bias — than her male counterparts. Rebecca’s accomplishments prove her excellence and earning a Pilot-In-Command in 450 hours is exceptional,” said Elizabeth McCormick, who was a Black Hawk pilot from 1996 to 2001.

That is still the case for women in the military today, based on her conversations with other pilots and service members, she said.

Lobach was undergoing the annual proficiency evaluation that every pilot faces, which includes physical and psychological exams, as well as simulated day and nighttime missions with an instructor pilot “to make sure the teachings are still there,” she said.

Lobach would not have been in charge of that flight, although she was qualified, because it was an evaluation, she said.

UNC ROTC Chair Lt. Col. Lisa Klekowski never met Lobach but has gotten to know her from people reaching out to share positive thoughts and personal stories, she said. UNC’s chancellor and administrative officials also offered their support the ROTC program and its cadets and alumni, she said.

The Tar Heel Battalion is a small and tight-knit program, with only 80 cadets this year, about 40% of them women, Klekowski said. Lobach’s continued investment in the program and her drive to be a mentor was “a special thing and really important,” she said.

The battalion is “deeply saddened” by the crash and “especially heartbroken by the loss of Capt. Rebecca Lobach,” who performed near the top in everything she did, Klekowski said, reading from a prepared statement.

“No words can fill the void of this tragic loss, but her memory is vibrant in the battalion and we will continue to remember her honorable service,” she said.

A memorial service might be held on campus in the future, Klekowski said, but for now, they are trying to honor the family’s wishes for privacy and work with the Casualty Assistance Center at Fort Liberty on “the best way forward.”

Staff writers Virginia Bridges and Danielle Battaglia contributed to this report.

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