New Delhi: Over the next month or so, two of India’s first female fighter pilots will take flight in solo sorties on a MiG-21 aircraft.
According to one report, Flying Officers Avani Chaturvedi and Bhawana Kanth have been posted with a MiG-21 squadron of the Indian Air Force (IAF) and are all set to create history by becoming the first women in IAF history to take a solo sortie in a fighter aircraft.
Chaturvedi, Kanth and Mohana Singh created history when they were inducted into the Indian Air Force as fighter pilots back in June 2016. Since then, they have undergone flight training and have flown sorties in trainer aircraft such as Pilatus PC-7 turboprops.
Now, according to media reports, Chaturvedi and Kanth are all set to fly the real thing. India has eight squadrons of the MiG-21, which are to be phased out of service by 2020. These ageing aircraft are much tougher to handle than the newer, more modern fighter jets such as the Sukhoi-30 MKI, in which Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman flew last week.
Mohana Singh from Rajasthan, who is currently still in training, is also expected to be deployed to a squadron in the next few months.
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