Watch: Indian Women Fighter Pilot Flies MiG-21 Solo

The Indian Air Force allowed media access to India’s first woman fighter pilot for the first time today (8 March), Livefist has reported.

Flying Officer Avani Chaturvedi, who took to the skies, is the first among the batch of three woman fighter pilots inducted by the Indian Air Force to fly the fighter plane on her own.

“The MiG-21 is a beautiful aircraft, and currently our oldest aircraft. This is aviation legacy. I feel so honoured to be able to fly it,” she said.

Flying solo, Chaturvedi took to the skies for the first time from the Jamnagar air base two weeks ago on 19 February.

“Every person in the military a soldier. It doesn’t matter if you are a man or a woman,” she added, at an interaction after the sortie.

Indian Armed Forces are on a mission to create more gender parity in the forces with women increasingly taking up even combat roles, which were earlier reserved for men. Avani’s flight in the MiG-21 fighter jet represents an important milestone on the mission.