#CreatingHistory: Air India's all-woman crew flight lands in Bengaluru
(Sourced from PTI)
Creating history, Air India's longest flight from San Francisco to Bengaluru with an all-woman crew landed in the city on Monday. Crew members of flight (AI-176) were received by a huge crowd at the Kempegowda International Airport. The people were elated as a new record was set for an all-woman crew flying the longest distance over the North Pole.
The direct distance between the two cities is 13,993 km with a time zone difference of around 13.5 hours. This was the longest commercial flight in the world to be operated by any airline in India. Captain Zoya Aggarwal, Captain Papagari Thanmai, Captain Akansha Sonaware, and Captain Shivani Manhas responded to the crowd by showing the thumbs-up sign.
They were received by the Air India team members who had put out a banner reading, "A warm welcome to our guests on the inaugural flight of AI 176, January 11, 2021 -- San Francisco to Bengaluru." Union Minister for Civil Aviation, Hardeep Singh Puri, tweeted to congratulate the crew. The San Francisco Airport authorities and Air India too rejoiced in the success.
In a moment to cherish celebrate, women professionals of Indian civil aviation create history.
— Hardeep Singh Puri (@HardeepSPuri) January 11, 2021
Heartiest Congratulations to Capt Zoya Aggarwal, Capt Papagari Thanmai, Capt Akansha Sonaware Capt Shivani for flying over North Pole to land in Bengaluru from San Francisco. pic.twitter.com/P6EvJChMGB
Flight AI176 departed from San Francisco at around 8:30 pm IST on Saturday and landed in Bangalore at around 3:45 am IST on Monday. "The total flight time on this route will be more than 17 hours depending on the wind speed on that particular day," Air India had said in a statement on the eve of the historic flight.
