Got no gender-specific training, says Navy’s first woman pilot after joining operations

In her new role, Sub-Lieutenant Shivangi will be flying the Dornier aircraft, used by the Navy for transport, reconnaissance and rescue missions.

Sub-Lieutenant Shivangi | Source: Indian Navy

New Delhi: Hard work and family — these are the two factors Sub-Lieutenant Shivangi credited as she made history Monday, joining naval operations at Kochi as India’s first woman Navy pilot.

As her feat was celebrated all over the country, Shivangi, 24, sought to play it down. It’s all about the opportunity, she told ThePrint in an interview.

“Your aptitude for flying and your capability for flying is clear when your psychomotor skills are tested soon after clearing the SSB (Services Selection Board),” she said over the phone from Kochi. “After that, it’s all about the hard work you put in.”

For Shivangi, who hails from Bihar’s Muzaffarpur, getting where she is may not have been a cakewalk, but she was persistent. Her family’s support, she said, buoyed her further.

“My family has been very supportive. There was no hindrance on their part.”

In her new role, Shivangi will be flying the Dornier aircraft, used by the Navy for transport, reconnaissance and rescue missions.

The naval air wing comprises the Dorniers, the Boeing P-8I maritime surveillance aircraft, the MiG-29K fighters and helicopters like the Seaking 42, the Kamovs, the Dhruv advanced light helicopters (ALH) and the Chetaks.

Try and try again

While flying was a childhood dream, Shivangi had little idea about the Navy while growing up. But it all changed when she saw a naval presentation for recruitment while in university.

She took and cleared the SSB while still pursuing a mechanical engineering degree from the Sikkim-Manipal Institute of Technology. However, she said, she could not make it to the merit list because of limited vacancies.

She then began pursuing an M.Tech at the Malaviya National Institute of Technology, Jaipur. Shivangi appeared for the SSB again in 2018. This time, she made it.

A six-month Naval Orientation Course followed at the Indian Naval Academy in Kerala’s Ezhimala. She then trained on a Pilatus basic trainer at the Air Force Academy.

Over the past six months, Shivangi learnt flying the Dornier maritime reconnaissance aircraft with the Indian Naval Air Squadron 550 in Kochi, popularly known as the ‘Flying Fish’.

So, was she treated any differently in a domain dominated by men?

“There were several lady cadets at the Air Force Academy. While flying was indeed overwhelming, I never felt I was alone,” she said.

Even in her squadron, she said, the commanding officer ensured she wasn’t treated any differently. “It was not a gender-specific training,” the officer added.

Shivangi, who has logged nearly 140 flying hours so far, will now start phase-3 of her training. For the next six months, she will learn flying the aircraft for maritime reconnaissance missions and search-and-rescue missions, among other operational roles.

Her long-term goal, however, is to fly the P-8I long-range maritime recce aircraft.

“But it all depends on how the training goes for the next few months,” she added.

Women in the Navy

Women are increasingly making their presence felt in the forces in roles that were long believed to be the preserve of men.

Earlier this year, Flight Lieutenant Bhawana Kanth became the first woman fighter pilot of the Indian Air Force to qualify to undertake missions by day on a fighter aircraft.

The Navy is about to get two more women pilots, Sub-Lt Shubhangi and Sub-Lt Divya, who will join Shivangi for operational flight training on the Dornier.

Until 1992, women were only permitted in the Navy for medical services. Then, the Navy started inducting women as officers in select branches on short-service commission.

Currently, the Navy has positions for 735 pilots, of which 91 are vacant, according to Ministry of Defence data.

A senior Naval officer told ThePrint that aviation roles for women meant stints as ATC officers and observers. The service turns out to be short, the officer added, as promotion aspects for those branches are low.

“Now, with permanent commission being offered, the options are opening up. Also, for promotion, the Navy Act mandates one year of sea service before qualifying for the next rank and women are not cleared for going to sea,” the officer added. “Now, even that is changing, so the options are opening up.”

Shivangi said she was hoping for the same, that new avenues will open up for women in the Navy.

She has a younger brother and sister, both pursuing their graduation currently. Her feat, she said, may now motivate them to join the Navy as well.