In her first appearance in the series, Kat is a rookie Viper pilot aboard the Battlestar Galactica, part of a group being trained by then Lieutenant Kara Thrace (Starbuck).[1] Although a rookie, she is very sharp and talented, and quickly becomes a hot-shot pilot, taking part in a vital operation to attack a Cylon tylium refinery base.[2] After Captain Lee "Apollo" Adama and Starbuck are transferred to the Battlestar Pegasus by Admiral Helena Cain, Kat becomes Galactica's senior pilot, leading the Galactica Air Wing in what amounts to a game of "chicken" with the Pegasus Air Wing.[4]