'We gave the others wings'

On the occasion of 100 years of Indian aviation, Sunday Mid day speaks to the women who charted the way for other female fliers

On the occasion of 100 years of Indian aviation, Sunday Mid day speaks to the women who charted the way for other female fliers

While women pilots may be a common sight today, Saudamini Deshmukh and Nivedita Bhasin remember a very different scenario when they launched their careers. The two women charted the way for their female colleagues by becoming India's first female pilots.



Capt. Saudamini Deshmukh
Now retired, Captain Deshmukh was the first woman to become a check-pilot in 1985 on a Fokker-27. She was also captain on an all-woman crew on a Boeing 737 that flew from Calcutta to Silchar. In another first, she captained an Airbus-320 in the same year. She also became the first lady to occupy the chair of Deputy General Manager, Operations in Indian Airlines.

Flying was a childhood dream but her first job was with the Bank of India as an officer from 1973 to 1979, before she joined Indian Airlines in 1980. "When I stepped into a cockpit for the first time, it was the most wonderful experience. I can't describe it," she says. She has some advice for today's pilots who are lured by fat salaries. "Unless you are passionate about your job, you might not make a great pilot."

Capt. Nivedita Bhasin
Captain Nivedita Bhasin is Deputy General Manager, Operations, Air India, and she commands the Airbus-330 on the Jeddah route.u00a0u00a0She became the youngest woman pilot in the world civil aviation industry to command a commercial aircraft in January 1990.

She was just 26. Captain Bhasin joined the airline in 1984 after acquiring her commercial flying license in 1983. She was co-pilot on the first all women crew flight Fokker -27, with Captain Saudamini Deshmukh in command on the Calcutta-Silchar route.

"When I was little, all I knew was that I wanted to do something different from the others. Flying was challenging, different from regular professions. It wasn't easy but positive energy kept me going."

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