Wing Commander S Dhami becomes first woman flight commander

Indian Air Force's Wing Commander S Dhami has created history as she becomes the first female officer in the country to become the flight commander of a flying unit of the IAF. Wing Commander S Dhami, who has clocked over 2300 hours of flying, has become IAF's first female Qualified Flying instructor for Chetak and Cheetah helicopters. S Dhami is also IAF's first woman officer to be granted permanent commission for a long tenure. This comes after a hard-fought legal victory that allowed women officers to be given the right to be considered for a permanent commission just like their male counterparts.

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Command of flight is the first key leadership position in the IAF. It opens the doors to women for command of higher formations and being accepted as mainstream officers attending to core military functions. A mother to a nine-year-old, Wing Commander S Dhami grew up in Ludhiana, Punjab and wanted to be a pilot since her school days, according to media reports. Women officers have fought the stereotypes over the years to be included in combat roles. The IAF's first batch of female fighter pilots is already in service. 

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Avani Chaturvedi becomes first Indian woman to fly MiG 21 Bison

On 19 February, Avani Chaturvedi became the first Indian woman to fly the MiG 21 Bison, solo. Not only did this declare that a woman from a small town in Madhya Pradesh could become a combat pilot, but it exponentially contributed to the complex narrative surrounding gender equality in India. Almost a year and a half ago, on June 2016, Chaturvedi, along with Bhawana Kanth and Mohana Singh, made history by becoming India’s first female fighter pilots.She underwent six months of intensive training at the Air Force Academy in Dundigal, Hyderabad, before she was inducted into the IAF fighter squadron. 

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