The Sky’s No Limit: Bhawana Kanth is India’s First Woman Fighter Pilot

Bhawana Kanth is set to become the first female fighter pilot to participate in the Republic Day parade 2021, India. 

The 28-year-old flight lieutenant Bhawana Kanth will be a part of the Indian Air Force’s (IAF’s) tableau that will showcase mock-ups of the light combat aircraft, light combat helicopter and the Sukhoi-30 fighter plane.

This year’s Republic Day Parade will highlight the newly-acquired Rafale fighter jets, with the IAF’s flypast culminating with the Vertical Charlie formation. Rafale jets will also be part of the Eklavya formation, which includes one Rafale jet, two Jaguars, and two MiG 29s. Besides, 38 IAF aircraft and four planes of the Indian Army will participate in the flypast on 26 January.

In an interview with India today Bhavana expressed her joy of participating in the Republic day parade. She said, “Since my childhood, I have been watching Republic Day parade on television and it’s a matter of pride that now I’m participating in it. I would love to fly other fighter jets, including Rafale and Sukhoi.”

In 2016, Bhavna along with Avani Chaturvedi and Mohana Singh became one of the first female fighter pilots to be induced in the Indian Air Force. In May 2019, Kanth qualified to undertake combat missions. Presently she is authorised on a MiG-21 Bison fighter plane at her airbase in Rajasthan.

Lesser Known Facts About The Lieutenant Bhawana Kanth

• Bhavna Kanth is a proud recipient of Nari Shakti Puruskar which was awarded to her by the President of India Ram Nath Kovind.

• In March 2020, Bhavna flew a MiG-21 Bison independently. The MiG-21 Bison is one of India’s six fighter jets often describes as the backbone of the Indian Air Force (IAF). It is a single-engine, single-seater multirole fighter aircraft. It has a maximum speed of 2,230 km/hr and carries one 23mm twin-barrel cannon with four R-60 close combat missiles.

• Bhavna Kanth has worked as an engineer at Tata Consultancy Services before taking up her passion for Flying!

Also Read:

• India’s first woman Air Marshal Dr Padmavathy Bandopadhyay

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