Indian Girls Have A New Hero: Avani Chaturvedi, The First Indian Woman To Fly A Fighter Jet
From a small town in Madhya Pradesh comes a new trail blazing hero with an origin story that will be told for many years to come. 24 year old Avani Chaturvedi, an Air Force Officer in the Indian Air Force just broke two barriers: the sound barrier and the female barrier.
Avani flew a 30-minute solo training drill in a MiG-21 at the Jamnagar airbase on the afternoon of Monday 19th February. She broke the sound barrier with a sonic boom, and smashed through the deep-rooted combat-exclusion policy barrier that prevented women from participating in the Indian armed forces.
“My heartiest congratulations to Flying Officer Avani Chaturvedi for successfully clearing her first solo sortie on a MiG-21 ‘Bison’ fighter. The IAF has always taken a lead in providing an equal platform to women officers. It’s a red letter day for the country.” — Air Chief Marshal B.S Dhanoa
Air Force training & practice takes many years to complete, because flying a ‘Bison’ is no simple feat. This fighter jet has the highest landing and take-off speed in the world at 340 km/ph. Proving once again that anything a man can do, a woman can also do. Such an achievement adds to the plethora of limiting beliefs about women that are now being broken. Avani has put India on the global list of countries such as the United States, Israel, Britain and Pakistan, where women fly fighter jets.
“Any air force is defined by its fighters. My dream is to become a good fighter pilot, on whom my seniors can rely when it comes to flying live operations. I want to fly the best fighter aircraft and learn more and more each day.” — Avani Chaturvedi
Avani is a role model to Indians all over the world. Asked about what motivated her to become a fighter pilot, she said that her family of Army Officers inspired her to look into a career in the Indian Air Force. Moreover, while studying a Bachelors in Technology at Banasthali University, she joined the Flying Club. She had a brief flying experience of a few hours that ignited her passion for the Indian Air Force.
We are immensely joyous & proud of Avani, as are many others. It is wonderful to see a strong show of support from people online. From celebrities to ministers, and from men to women, there is consensus of opinion that this is the future we want: an equal playing field for men and women.
“This is indeed an inspiration to thousands of young girls, especially from small towns. Congratulations to Officer Ms. Avani.” — Unnikrishnan Nair
While this was a training drill, Avani has one more year until she will break another record: being the first Indian woman to be deployed for a combat mission. We wish her good luck and will be cheering for our new hero from the ground.
Let us know your thoughts in the comments below! We read & respond to every comment.
Thanks for reading The Brown League! We are the voice of the next generation of South Asian youth from around the world.
