NEW DELHI: Taking a major step towards making it a gender-neutral force, the Indian Air Force on Tuesday selected Group Captain Shaliza Dhami to take over the command of a frontline combat unit facing Pakistan in the Western sector.
Group Captain (equivalent to Colonel in the Army) Dhami was commissioned in 2003 as a helicopter pilot and has logged over 2,800 hours of flying experience.
She is the first qualified woman flying instructor in the IAF and has served as flight commander of a helicopter unit in the Western sector.
WATCH |
Dhami’s selection highlights the IAF’s efforts to provide women with more opportunities in combat and command roles. The IAF broke the glass ceiling by inducting three women officers — Avani Chaturvedi, Bhawana Kanth and Mohana Singh — into the fighter stream in July 2016.
In 2018, flying officer Avani Chaturvedi became the first Indian woman pilot to fly a fighter aircraft solo by flying a MiG-21 Bison.
At present, a total of 1,875 women officers are serving in the IAF, which has opened all its branches, including the special forces unit Garud, for women. The female officers are working as weapons systems operators in Sukhoi fighters and are flying the special operations squadrons of the C-130j Hercules, C-17 strategic transport aircraft.
The IAF already has a few women commanding the static units, but they only have a supporting role and are not directly part of the combat zone. Group Captain Dhami will be in the operations area.
Dhami has also, in the past, been commended by Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief on two occasions