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**massons** · 01-27-2012, 01:35 AM

Link IAF women pilots break altitude barrier TNN Jan 25, 2012, 01.44AM IST

NEW DELHI: Continuing with their sparkling achievements, IAF women pilots have now begun to go where no women has gone before. They are flying military cargo aircraft sorties to forbidding high-altitude forward areas like Daulat Beg Oldi (DBO) and Leh.

"Since December, some women IAF pilots are flying sorties of AN-32 medium-lift aircraft to DBO, the highest advanced landing ground (makeshift airstrip) in the world at 16,500-feet, and IL-76 heavy-lift aircraft to Leh," said a senior officer

These "women air warriors" have often beaten their male counterparts in military aviation skills to get where they have reached by the sheer dint of their hard work and "challenging attitudes". While women pilots are not yet allowed to fly fighter jets, they have been taking to the skies in helicopters and transport aircraft in IAF for over a decade now.

Of the around 950 women officers in IAF, around 70 are pilots. Take Squadron Leader Teji Uppal, who has created history by being the first woman pilot to land at DBO, which overlooks the strategic Karakoram Pass and only a few km away from the China-occupied Aksai Chin area.

Commissioned in December, 2002, after passing ahead of many of her male counterparts at the IAF Academy, Squadron Leader Uppal attained the "B-Green" category, which makes her "a totally independent captain to operate in the treacherous mountains of Himalayas" in a short span of six years.

"Though she was out of flying for almost two years to raise her family, she came right back to the thick of things when there was a requirement for forward area operations in northern Ladakh," said an officer.

"A member of the elite group of military aviators who have landed at the risky Vijaynagar and Mechuka ALGs in Arunachal Pradesh, she is also qualified to undertake independent dropping operations in the glacial regions of Ladakh," he added.

Then, there is Squadron Leader Veena Saharan, who is adept at flying the massive IL-76 `Gajraj' heavy-lift aircraft after initially serving two tenures with AN-32. "She was the first women pilot to land a military multi-engine aircraft like the IL-76 at the Leh airfield in December. Since then, she has been regularly undertaking independent air maintenance sorties in the northern sector, which is a unique feat," he added.

01-27-2012, 01:35 AM	#20
massons Join Date Oct 2005 Posts 383 Senior Member	Link IAF women pilots break altitude barrier TNN Jan 25, 2012, 01.44AM IST NEW DELHI: Continuing with their sparkling achievements, IAF women pilots have now begun to go where no women has gone before. They are flying military cargo aircraft sorties to forbidding high-altitude forward areas like Daulat Beg Oldi (DBO) and Leh. "Since December, some women IAF pilots are flying sorties of AN-32 medium-lift aircraft to DBO, the highest advanced landing ground (makeshift airstrip) in the world at 16,500-feet, and IL-76 heavy-lift aircraft to Leh," said a senior officer These "women air warriors" have often beaten their male counterparts in military aviation skills to get where they have reached by the sheer dint of their hard work and "challenging attitudes". While women pilots are not yet allowed to fly fighter jets, they have been taking to the skies in helicopters and transport aircraft in IAF for over a decade now. Of the around 950 women officers in IAF, around 70 are pilots. Take Squadron Leader Teji Uppal, who has created history by being the first woman pilot to land at DBO, which overlooks the strategic Karakoram Pass and only a few km away from the China-occupied Aksai Chin area. Commissioned in December, 2002, after passing ahead of many of her male counterparts at the IAF Academy, Squadron Leader Uppal attained the "B-Green" category, which makes her "a totally independent captain to operate in the treacherous mountains of Himalayas" in a short span of six years. "Though she was out of flying for almost two years to raise her family, she came right back to the thick of things when there was a requirement for forward area operations in northern Ladakh," said an officer. "A member of the elite group of military aviators who have landed at the risky Vijaynagar and Mechuka ALGs in Arunachal Pradesh, she is also qualified to undertake independent dropping operations in the glacial regions of Ladakh," he added. Then, there is Squadron Leader Veena Saharan, who is adept at flying the massive IL-76 `Gajraj' heavy-lift aircraft after initially serving two tenures with AN-32. "She was the first women pilot to land a military multi-engine aircraft like the IL-76 at the Leh airfield in December. Since then, she has been regularly undertaking independent air maintenance sorties in the northern sector, which is a unique feat," he added.
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