Fighter jets do not discriminate between a man or woman: Avani Chaturvedi
Chaturvedi created history on February this year by becoming the first Indian woman fighter pilot to fly solo. She flew a MiG-21 Bison in her first training solo sortie, in Jamnagar, Gujarat.
On International Women's Day, India's first woman fighter pilot Avani Chaturvedi who holds the distinction to fly solo stressed the need to be efficient and hard working. ​
"Machine doesn't know your gender. Be it a boy or a girl, you've to be competent, the Indian Air Force doesn't discriminate. To make the 30 mins of sortie work you've to do a lot of groundwork, the contribution of the team that supports is immensely important," Chaturvedi was quoted as saying by ANI.
Flying Officer Chaturvedi also spoke about how her journey of being a fighter pilot has been a learning experience so far.
"I've done my schooling from a Hindi medium school. The journey of being a fighter pilot has been about a lot of learning. I'm still in the training phase of being an independent pilot," she further said.
Chaturvedi created history on February this year by becoming the first Indian woman fighter pilot to fly solo. She flew a MiG-21 Bison in her first training solo sortie, in Jamnagar, Gujarat.
She was declared as the first combat pilot along with two of her cohort, Mohana Singh, and Bhawana Kanth. The trio was inducted into the Indian Air Force fighter squadron on June 18, 2016. They were formally commissioned by then Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar.
Avani along with Mohana and Bhawani were commissioned as flying officers into the fighter stream after basic training in June 2016 on "an experimental basis" for five years initially.
She did her schooling from Deoland, a small town in Shahdol district of Madhya Pradesh. Completing her Bachelors in Technology from Banasthali University, Rajasthan in 2014, she passed the Indian Air Force exam.
Chaturvedi was inspired by her brother who is in the Army. She always wanted to conquer the skies and hence joined the Flying Club in her college.
Chaturvedi's achievement has put India on the list of the countries such as Britain, the United States, Israel, and Pakistan, where women are allowed to fly fighter jets.
(With ANI inputs)