Karen Ulane

Karen Frances Ulane (10 December 1941 – 22 May 1989) was an American airline pilot who was dismissed by Eastern Airlines after undergoing transsexual transition in 1980. The case Ulane v. Eastern Airlines became the federal legal precedent for transsexual legal status under the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

Ulane flew combat missions in the Vietnam War from 1964 to 1968, then became a pilot for Eastern Airlines. Though Ulane won the case, it was overturned on appeal.

Ulane died in the crash of a chartered DC-3 approximately five miles southwest of DeKalb, Illinois.