Flying high, but still a long way to go

The strong presence of women in commercial piloting here is certainly to be lauded.
Express Illustration
Express Illustration

CHENNAI: The global average percentage of women in a nation’s commercial pilot force stands at just 5% — and India currently has triple this statistic. Fifteen per cent of the 10,000 commercial pilots currently working in India, across carriers, are women.

This is the world’s highest percentage, as per data released by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA). India has also held this record for a while; even last year, at 12.4%, there were more women pilots here than anywhere else in the world, with Ireland and South Africa some points behind at 9.9% and 9.8% respectively.

The strong presence of women in commercial piloting here is certainly to be lauded. These statistics have been achieved despite no formal push for inclusivity in the sector. As the DGCA also noted, there are no specific training programmes for women or other marginalised people, including caste-marginalised people. That this has been noted suggests that these criteria may become the focus of new programmes, especially those developed to fulfil India’s increasing demand for pilots (5,000 new pilots are expected to be required to enter the workforce over the next five years).

That said, some airlines presently offer benefits for women employees, ranging from taking pregnancies into account without job loss but with minimised responsibilities to childcare-related flexibilities. These measures are likely to be what helps with the retention of women employees, pilots or otherwise, in the aviation sector. It’s important to remember that at large, the Indian workforce has been bleeding out its women at an alarming rate: the most recently published statistics showed that women’s participation fell from 30% in 1990 to 19% in 2021.

If there are cues to be taken from aviation, they should be heeded. Simply applauding the sector, chalking up another global-stage win and dismissing valid circumspection is pretty much just a form of gaslighting the reality of women’s work and women’s lives in India. 15% is the highest share in the world, but it is very far from 50%, which would indicate real equality of opportunity at every stage: from familial support to training to recruitment to active duty. Feminist gains are not made overnight, and pointing this out isn’t to dampen the importance of the existing statistic.

This is also a good moment to reiterate the difference between women who have careers in the cockpit and those who walk the aisles: the mistreatment of inflight staff by entitled passengers often makes the news too.

I haven’t flown in years and was always rather infrequently on the inside of an aircraft anyway, but despite my circumspection, I know how important this is. I distinctly recall walking along a jet bridge in 2016, when I noticed one of the pilots in the cockpit of the plane I was to board.

I slowed my pace and watched her until she made eye contact across that distance, and then I smiled and nodded. She acknowledged my gesture. I had been in Mumbai for reasons relating to gender equality, and it all felt significant. To me, that pilot was still a novelty. I hope she knew why I stood there and smiled at her so much.

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