The Air Force has its own Captain Marvel.
The service announced on Twitter that Capt. Zoe "Sis" Kotnik would be the first female commander of a single-aircraft demonstration team — a launch that aims to spur recruitment by giving a nod to an upcoming Captain Marvel superhero film featuring a female fighter pilot, Stars and Stripes reported.
"In that instant . . . She knew she could fly her F-16 higher, further, and faster than anyone else," reads text written into the tweeted image of the proud pilot.
Kotnik was tapped as pilot and commander of the Air Combat Command's F-16 Viper Demonstration Team last week after completing her certification flights. The aircraft is the latest variant of the Fighting Falcon, and is featured at dozens of airshows every year, Stars and Stripes noted.
The new Captain Marvel flick out March 8 features Brie Larson in the role of the titular superhero, whose alter ego Carol Danvers is an F-16 pilot in the Air Force. Air Force pilots, including Brig. Gen. Jeannie Leavitt, the service's first female fighter pilot, assisted in the production, Stars and Stripes reported.
A trailer was aired during the Super Bowl on Sunday, the military news outlet said.
In another nod to the movie, the Air Force Recruiting Service included the hashtag #higherfurtherfaster in a post Friday announcing Leavitt, who heads the recruiting service, hosted dozens of female pilots for an event at Edwards Air Force Base, Calif. Kotnik was among them.
"Every hero has an origin story," said the post, which included a photo of the women on a foggy tarmac in front of a formation of aircraft. "We asked over 80 female pilots to share theirs."
Kotnik will lead a team of 17 airmen assigned to Shaw Air Force Base, S.C., as they travel to more than 20 airshows showcasing the F-16's maneuverability to an estimated 10 million spectators each year, the Air Force said.