An all-female Indian pilot team made history this week when they completed the longest non-stop commercial flight ever operated by an Indian national airline.
Air India’s four-women cockpit crew completed a 17-hour-long flight on Monday aboard Air India flight 176 – A Boeing 777 – from San Francisco to Bengaluru in southern India. The direct distance between the two cities – two of the world’s most important tech hubs – is 13,993km and the time zone change is 13.5 hours.
Speaking to CNN Travel, the commander of the flight, Captain Zoya Aggarwal, said “We are India’s daughters who were given the opportunity to make this historic flight. We were able to create a new chapter in the Indian aviation history.”
The other members of the record-breaking team were co-pilot Captain Thanmei Papagari and two first officers, Captain Akansha Sonaware and Captain Shivani Manhas.
#FlyAI : Welcome Home
Capt Zoya Agarwal, Capt Papagiri Thanmei, Capt Akanksha & Capt Shivani after completing a landmark journey with touchdown @BLRAirport.Kudos for making Air India proud.
We also congratulate passengers of AI176 for being part of this historic moment. pic.twitter.com/UFUjvvG01h
— Air India (@airindiain) January 10, 2021
