Indian Airforce Day: Milestones of Women In Indian Air Force

Indian Air Force Day is celebrated on 8th October. Indian Air Force Day is celebrated to pay tribute to the Indian Air Force and to highlight the nation's accomplishments in the area. The nation recognises Indian Airforce Day in the presence of the president, the head of the Indian Air Force (IAF), and other senior military officers, .

Indian Air Force involves defending Indian territory and national interests from all the potential dangers, It also offers assistance in times of natural disaster. The IAF provides strategic and tactical airlift capabilities in addition to providing air support to the Indian Army on the battlefield. Indian Air Force has made necessary development to make force gender-neutral. Indian Air Force (IAF) first began experimentally accepting female pilots six years ago. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh cited this decision as evidence of the government's commitment to women's empowerment in February 2022. The programme for "Induction of Women SSC officers in Fighter Stream of Flying Branch" didn't start until 2016. The Defense Ministry had approved permitting women to join the Air Force as fighter pilots in 2015. Now women are allowed in combat services and supervisory roles

Women are always able to excel, and this was true in this field as well. India is fortunate to have many female pilots, who are an inspiration. It is less known that, all wings of the Indian Armed Forces have women in combat roles. The International Society of Women Airline Pilots estimates, India has the highest percentage of female pilots, that is 12.4% of all pilots women, compared to 5.5% in the US and 4.7% in the UK.

Indian Air Force Day And Milestones Women Reached

Avani Chaturvedi

India's first female fighter aircraft pilot took to the skies in February. This is not Avani Chaturvedi's sole accomplishment. The Madhya Pradesh-born flying officer was one of the first group of three female officers to be commissioned as fighter pilots in the Indian Air Force (IAF) in June 2016. On February 19, Chaturvedi became the first woman to fly solo in a MiG-21 Bison fighter aircraft over Jamnagar Air Base for around 30 minutes.

Bhawana Kanth

One of the first female fighter pilots in the IAF is Bhawana Kanth. She and Avani Chaturvedi were the first female fighter pilots to be accepted into the Indian Air Force (IAF) in 2016. The first female fighter pilot to participate in an Indian Air Force (IAF) tableau at the Republic Day parade on Rajpath in Delhi. Models of the Sukhoi-30 fighter plane, light combat helicopter, and light combat aircraft were on exhibit at the IAF tableau. She and Avani Chaturvedi were the first female fighter pilots to be accepted into the Indian Air Force (IAF) in 2016. The first female fighter pilot to participate in an Indian Air Force (IAF) tableau at the Republic Day parade on Rajpath in Delhi. Models of the Sukhoi-30 fighter plane, light combat helicopter, and light combat aircraft were on exhibit at the IAF tableau.

Mohana Singh Jitarwal

One of India's first female fighter pilots is Mohana Singh Jitarwal. She was recognised as the first female combat pilot, along with two of her colleagues, Bhawana Kanth and Avani Chaturvedi. In June 2016, all three female pilots were accepted into the fighter unit of the Indian Air Force. They were formally commissioned by Manohar Parrikar, the defence minister. These three women were the first to be chosen for the programme when the Indian government decided to open the fighter stream in the Indian Air Force to women on an experimental basis.

Captain Zoya Agarwal

Captain Zoya Agarwal, the first Indian woman to fly above the North Pole, made aviation history by securing her seat in the SFO aviation museum. She flew past the North Pole for the first time in history, travelling a record-breaking 16,000 kilometres. For the first time, an all-female Flying India crew, piloted by Zoya Agarwal, flew across the North Pole on the world's longest air route from San Francisco (SFO) to Bengaluru. She is a senior Boeing 777 pilot with Air India.

Shivangi Singh

Shivangi Singh was inducted into the Indian Navy under the Short Service Commission (SSC)-Pilot entry scheme. In June 2018, she was commissioned into the Indian Navy. She undertook two successive six-month courses; first the Naval Orientation Course at the Indian Naval Academy, and the second at Air Force Academy where she trained on the Pilatus PC 7 MkII aircraft. In the six months before December 2019, she learnt to fly the Dornier aircraft at the Indian Naval Air Squadron 550. Shivangi is among the batch of the first three pilots of the Indian Navy, including Lt Shubhangi Swaroop and Lt Divya Sharma. She is slated to subsequently become an operational pilot on Maritime Reconnaissance (MR) aircraft after completing her training, in December 2019.

Gunjan Saxena

Gunjan is an Indian Air Force (IAF) officer and former helicopter pilot. She joined the IAF in 1996 and is a 1999 Kargil War veteran. She is one of the first women to fly in a combat zone. One of her main roles during the Kargil War was to evacuate the wounded from Kargil, transport supplies and assist in surveillance. She would go on to be part of operations to evacuate over 900 troops, both injured and deceased, from Kargil. In 2004, after serving as a pilot for eight years, her career as a helicopter pilot ended; permanent commissions for women were not available during her time. The 2020 Bollywood film Gunjan Saxena: The Kargil Girl is inspired by her life.