Katie was an intelligence specialist attached to a Special Forces unit when she was tasked to join Blue Light, a dedicated counterterrorism unit created prior to the formation of the Army’s 1st SFOD-D (Delta Force).
Half Japanese and half Scottish, Katie was petite but tough and physically fit. Her role was envisioned as an intelligence collector who could slip into an aircraft or facility disguised as a nurse or stewardess and provide critical intel prior to an assault.
Katie became a highly accomplished marksman with the 1911, M-16, and Swedish-K submachine gun. She was Airborne qualified, attended the HALO course, and trained in room-clearing and helicopter STABO extractions.
When 1st SFOD-D stood up soon after, founder COL Charles Beckwith denied Katie an opportunity to join the team. She left military service soon after.Katie left the military after her experience in Blue Light. She married a 1st Ranger Battalion soldier named James Bradford who jumped into Grenada in 1983.
By 1982, Delta revisited the idea of incorporating female operators, although that early experiment failed. By the 1990s women were a dedicated part of Delta operations. Katie McBrayer was the original pioneer, fifteen years ahead of her time.