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"I hope someday to be introduced as a pilot, not as lady pilot” — Capt Kainaz Vakil, who flies for a commercial airline.
"An aircraft does not know if you are a boy or a girl” — Capt Priya Paul, pilot with a commercial airline, among the first batch of women pilots of the Indian Air Force.
Vakil, Paul, Capt Ramona Vesuvala and First Officer Mehr Sethna were panelists at a seminar titled "Flying High — Journey Beyond the Clouds” organized by the Women Entrepreneurs (WE) wing of the World Zarathushti Chamber of Commerce (WZCC) on January 9, 2021. The keynote address was delivered by 24-year-old Capt Arohi Pandit, who was part of the Women Empowered Expedition of the Navy-Blue Foundation that signed up to navigate the world in a light sports aircraft in September 2018. Dilnavaz Shroff, director of the Toronto Chapter of WZCC, who introduced Pandit, mentioned that the pilot was the "first woman in the world to fly across the Atlantic Ocean solo from Scotland to Canada” and also the first woman ever to fly over the treacherous Greenland icecaps. "Her journey across the mighty Pacific Ocean, non-stop from Alaska to East Russia set yet another world record, very unlikely to be broken for a long time,” stated Shroff. Pandit’s expedition is pending its final phase, as due to Covid-19, she was not allowed entry into China.

 

 

 

 

 

Pandit’s illustrated talk showed her light aircraft, "no bigger than a tuk-tuk (auto rickshaw) and weighing as much as an SUV (sports utility vehicle),” that took her to 20 countries, with 27 stops. "It’s just you — the sky above and one’s flying skills, to keep you from falling to the ground,” she narrated. "What is the one thing that will make one a good pilot?” Pandit is often asked. She narrated that her retort is "If you know, tell me…every day is a learning experience.”
The participants spoke of what motivated them. "Whenever there was bad weather, I would speak to myself,” said Pandit. Paul was enthused towards flying by her father. "I always wanted to marry a naval officer…My father told me I could be in the services and be an officer,” she laughed. Vakil was inspired to fly by her parents who worked as cabin crew. "I always wanted to be a pilot ever since I was in class 10,” stated Sethna. Vesuvala noted that as a child she was tired of hearing about a cousin’s ambitions to be an airhostess. "So, one up on that was to be a pilot,” she laughed.
Is it an unequal world in aviation? queried Behroze Daruwalla, international chair of WE, who also moderated the discussion. Vesuvala described how she had stumbled upon her own bio data while working in a Tata company, where the word ‘female’ was highlighted, as was her age. Next to it, someone had written, "Are we brave enough?” A further comment read, "Yes, we are and we should give her a chance.” To Vakil, "all professions throw up challenges but one needs to hold on to the positives as these empower you to realize your dreams.” Paul, mother of an aspiring woman pilot, told the audience that in military flying, every day is a challenge. In comparison, "domestic flying is boring,” she claimed.
The seminar was a joint initiative of the Bombay, Bangalore and Toronto chapters of WZCC. Daruwalla stated that she conceived of the session when she overheard a lad make a stray comment in Marathi, "Aila hi tarr baiko aahé (Oh my, this is a woman)” on noting that a woman pilot was to fly him out of Guwahati airport. "‘Let us get rid of this myth,’ I said to myself,” reminisced Daruwalla.
With 13% of all pilots in the country being women, a statistic quoted by Paul, Vakil concluded her remarks with a telling comment: "All my friends say the sky is blue. But I only see colors.”
Villie Daruvala, WE chair for the Bombay chapter summed up the proceedings while Shernaz Siganporia, secretary of the Bangalore chapter offered a vote of thanks.
"I hope someday to be introduced as a pilot, not as lady pilot” — Capt Kainaz Vakil, who flies for a commercial airline.
"An aircraft does not know if you are a boy or a girl” — Capt Priya Paul, pilot with a commercial airline, among the first batch of women pilots of the Indian Air Force.
Vakil, Paul, Capt Ramona Vesuvala and First Officer Mehr Sethna were panelists at a seminar titled "Flying High — Journey Beyond the Clouds” organized by the Women Entrepreneurs (WE) wing of the World Zarathushti Chamber of Commerce (WZCC) on January 9, 2021. The keynote address was delivered by 24-year-old Capt Arohi Pandit, who was part of the Women Empowered Expedition of the Navy-Blue Foundation that signed up to navigate the world in a light sports aircraft in September 2018. Dilnavaz Shroff, director of the Toronto Chapter of WZCC, who introduced Pandit, mentioned that the pilot was the "first woman in the world to fly across the Atlantic Ocean solo from Scotland to Canada” and also the first woman ever to fly over the treacherous Greenland icecaps. "Her journey across the mighty Pacific Ocean, non-stop from Alaska to East Russia set yet another world record, very unlikely to be broken for a long time,” stated Shroff. Pandit’s expedition is pending its final phase, as due to Covid-19, she was not allowed entry into China.
Pandit’s illustrated talk showed her light aircraft, "no bigger than a tuk-tuk (auto rickshaw) and weighing as much as an SUV (sports utility vehicle),” that took her to 20 countries, with 27 stops. "It’s just you — the sky above and one’s flying skills, to keep you from falling to the ground,” she narrated. "What is the one thing that will make one a good pilot?” Pandit is often asked. She narrated that her retort is "If you know, tell me…every day is a learning experience.”
The participants spoke of what motivated them. "Whenever there was bad weather, I would speak to myself,” said Pandit. Paul was enthused towards flying by her father. "I always wanted to marry a naval officer…My father told me I could be in the services and be an officer,” she laughed. Vakil was inspired to fly by her parents who worked as cabin crew. "I always wanted to be a pilot ever since I was in class 10,” stated Sethna. Vesuvala noted that as a child she was tired of hearing about a cousin’s ambitions to be an airhostess. "So, one up on that was to be a pilot,” she laughed.
Is it an unequal world in aviation? queried Behroze Daruwalla, international chair of WE, who also moderated the discussion. Vesuvala described how she had stumbled upon her own bio data while working in a Tata company, where the word ‘female’ was highlighted, as was her age. Next to it, someone had written, "Are we brave enough?” A further comment read, "Yes, we are and we should give her a chance.” To Vakil, "all professions throw up challenges but one needs to hold on to the positives as these empower you to realize your dreams.” Paul, mother of an aspiring woman pilot, told the audience that in military flying, every day is a challenge. In comparison, "domestic flying is boring,” she claimed.
The seminar was a joint initiative of the Bombay, Bangalore and Toronto chapters of WZCC. Daruwalla stated that she conceived of the session when she overheard a lad make a stray comment in Marathi, "Aila hi tarr baiko aahé (Oh my, this is a woman)” on noting that a woman pilot was to fly him out of Guwahati airport. "‘Let us get rid of this myth,’ I said to myself,” reminisced Daruwalla.
With 13% of all pilots in the country being women, a statistic quoted by Paul, Vakil concluded her remarks with a telling comment: "All my friends say the sky is blue. But I only see colors.”
Villie Daruvala, WE chair for the Bombay chapter summed up the proceedings while Shernaz Siganporia, secretary of the Bangalore chapter offered a vote of thanks.