1st woman to lead in combat ‘thrilled’ with change

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U.S. Army Capt. LindL. Bray her home Thursday Jan. 24 2013 Clemmons N.C. During invasiPanam1989 Bray became first woman

U.S. Army Capt. Linda L. Bray in her home on Thursday, Jan. 24, 2013, in Clemmons, N.C. During the invasion of Panama in 1989, Bray became the first woman to lead US troops in battle. Commander of the 988th Military Police, she engaged in a firefight with elite Panamanian Special Forces unit inside a military barracks and dog kennel. Framed on the wall are awards and unit patches she collected while serving. (AP Photo/Lynn Hey)

U.S. Army Capt. LindL. Bray her home Thursday Jan. 24 2013 Clemmons N.C. During invasiPanam1989 Bray became first woman lead

U.S. Army Capt. Linda L. Bray in her home on Thursday, Jan. 24, 2013, in Clemmons, N.C. During the invasion of Panama in 1989, Bray became the first woman to lead US troops in battle. Commander of the 988th Military Police, she engaged in a firefight with elite Panamanian Special Forces unit inside a military barracks and dog kennel. Hanging on the wall in are bayonets taken from AK47s that was captured during the attack along with her MP brassard or armband. (AP Photo/Lynn Hey)

Kristen Auge Deputy Director Public Affairs introduces soldiers from left Army Sgt. 1st Class Katie Reed Army Sgt. Cassie Mecuk

Kristen Auge, Deputy Director of Public Affairs, introduces soldiers from left, Army Sgt. 1st Class Katie Reed, Army Sgt. Cassie Mecuk, Army Staff Sgt. Andrea Drost, Army Sgt. Katie Warden, Air Force Maj. Ann Todd, and Air Force Master Sgt. Holly Caroon at the Inver Grove Heights, Minn., Training and Community Center following Secretary of Defense Leon E. Panetta's and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Martin E. Dempsey's announcement regarding women in combat. The Minnesota National Guard says it will integrate female soldiers into previously all-male combat infantry units. (AP Photo/The Star Tribune, Elizabeth Flores) MANDATORY CREDIT; ST. PAUL PIONEER PRESS OUT; MAGS OUT; TWIN CITIES TV OUT

FILE - In this Sept. 18 2012 file phofemale soldiers from 1st Brigade CombTeam 101st Airborne Divisitrafiring range while testing

FILE - In this Sept. 18, 2012 file photo, female soldiers from 1st Brigade Combat Team, 101st Airborne Division train on a firing range while testing new body armor in Fort Campbell, Ky., in preparation for their deployment to Afghanistan. The Pentagon is lifting its ban on women serving in combat, opening hundreds of thousands of front-line positions and potentially elite commando jobs after generations of limits on their service, defense officials said Wednesday, Jan. 23, 2013. (AP Photo/Mark Humphrey, File)

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — The first woman to lead U.S. troops in combat says she’s thrilled the Pentagon has changed a policy that banned other women from the battlefield. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta lifted the ban Thursday on women serving in direct combat roles, more …