Indian Air Force gets its first woman flight engineer

BENGALURU: Flight Lieutenant Hina Jaiswal has created history by becoming the first Indian Woman Flight Engineer. She achieved the feat after completing the prestigious Flight Engineers’ course 112 Helicopter Unit, Air Force Station, Yelahanka.

Commissioned on January 15 in the engineering branch of the IAF, she has served as Chief of firing team and battery commander in a frontline Surface to Air Missile squadron, before being selected for the prestigious Flight Engineers’ Course.

She successfully completed the course and earned her Flight Engineer’s wing on Friday. During the course of six months of grueling training, she trained shoulder to shoulder with her male counterparts, and displayed unflinching commitment, dedication and perseverance, said a press release from the Ministry of Defence said.


Jaiswal, hails from Chandigarh and has completed her Bachelor of Engineering degree from Panjab University. Hina describes her achievement as a “dream come true”. Since childhood, she had aspired to don the soldier’s uniform and take on the skies as an aviator. Finally, her dreams have manifested into reality after successfully graduating from the alma mater of Heli-lift.

As a Flight Engineer, she would subsequently be posted to operational helicopter units of the IAF. While in the unit, she would be routinely called upon to operate in demanding and stressful conditions, right from the icy heights of the Siachen Glacier to the seas of the Andamans. Hina is enthusiastic about her stint in aviation and looks forward to embracing challenges with open arms.