Ask John: Who Are Anime’s Greatest Female Pilots?

Question:
Who are the greatest female pilots in anime? How far back in anime can we go until we find a female hotshot who holds her own?

Answer:
Strictly speaking, female pilots in anime date back to Sayaka Yumi, the pilot of the Aphrodite A robot in 1972’s Mazinger Z television series, although she’s not acknowledged as an ace pilot. Yoko Misaki of Tatsunoko’s 1976 robot anime series Gowapper 5 Godam is widely considered the first female lead character in a mecha anime. However, she really didn’t do anything noteworthy in the show. Anime’s first significant female ace pilot appeared several years later when Milia Fallyna was introduced in 1982’s Superdimensional Fortress Macross. She was quickly followed by skilled giant robot mechanic & pilot Hotaru Mizuki in 1983’s Kosoku Denjin Albegas. Since then, while mecha anime has been predominantly headlined by male pilots, females have had some spotlight positions as well.

Macross has a bit of a tradition of including skilled female pilots. While Milia appears in the original television series and motion picture, Macross Zero introduced ruthless fighter ace Nora Polyansky, and Macross Frontier featured Klan Clang. Anime fans often cite Noa Izumi of the late 80’s robot anime Patlabor as an example of a skilled pilot, but they forget that it’s actually Kanuka Clancy who is Patlabor’s most skilled female patrol labor operator. The girls of the late 80’s fighter jet OVA series Hummingbirds, and the girls of 1991’s 801 TTS deserve mention because despite piloting conventional fighter jets rather than giant robots, they are recognized as top class pilots. Yamamoto Yoko from the 1996 OVA series that bears her name should also be recognized as one of anime’s most elite female fighter pilots.

Like Macross, the Gundam franchise has its share of skilled female pilots. Quess Paraya seems to be credited as a skilled pilot in the Char’s Counterattack movie. Christina Mackenzie demonstrates her abilities in the Gundam 0080 OVA series. Soma Peries & Neena Trinity both appear in Gundam OO. In Sunrise’s Code Geass series, Kallen Kouzuki is commonly acknowledged as an ace mecha pilot. And I think it’s arguable whether a Rideback constitutes a mecha that’s piloted or a motorcycle that’s ridden, but if the former applies, then protagonist Rin Ogata is an intuitive genius Rideback pilot.

I’m certain that many other ace female pilots appear in anime – some of whom I’ve forgotten, and some of whom I’m not familiar with. Anime has an even larger number of female fighter jet and robot pilots who aren’t unusually skilled or who happen to gain a spotlight because of their role or the power of their mecha rather than their own piloting skill. For example, Noriko Takaya isn’t an especially skilled pilot, but the power of the Gunbuster robot she pilots compensates for her own average ability. Furthermore, perhaps female pilots including Lufy from Gall Force and Sara Werec in Souko no Strain should be credited as skilled pilots simply for their ability to survive battles that no one else can survive.