ahlam1399
06-22-2016, 03:13 PM
NEW DELHI: The Indian Air Force (IAF) has recruited its first female fighter pilots, paving the way for more women to be given combat roles as one of
the world´s biggest military forces takes steps towards greater gender parity.
Flying ******rs Mohana Singh, Bhawana Kanth and Avani Chaturvedi received their wings on Saturday when they were commissioned into the IAF at a graduation ceremony in the southern city of Hyderabad.
"It is a golden day as for the first time these women are going to join the fighter pilots," Indian Defence Minister Ma**har Parrikar said at the ceremony.
"This will inspire more women to take up the most challenging task in the armed forces. Our long-term objective is to work towards gender parity in the armed forces.
"Prime Minister Narendra Modi also congratulated the women, saying it was "a matter of immense pride and joy" to have the first female fighter pilots.
"More power to them," he tweeted.
Only a handful of countries such as Britain, the United States, Israel and neighbouring Pakistan, have allowed women into the cockpits of fighter jets.
India had until **w kept women out of that role, and away from frontline warships and ground combat, citing concerns over their vulnerability if captured and their physical and mental ability to handle the stress of such deployments.
The country´s defence forces began recruiting women to **n-medical positions in 1992, yet only 2.5 percent of its more than 1 million personnel are women - most of them administrators, intelligence ******rs, doctors, nurses or dentists.
In recent years, Indian courts have pushed the military to widen opportunities for women, by giving them permanent commissions, for example, instead of limiting them to five-year terms.
Modi´s government an**unced last year it would bring women into fighting roles and approved IAF plans for women pilots to fly warplanes from June 2017 on a three-year experimental basis.
Indian President Pranab Mukherjee in February went a step further an**uncing the country would induct women in all fighter streams of the armed forces in the future.
Defence Minister Parrikar confirmed plans to extend combat roles for women in the army and navy, adding it would take time.
http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/com/YEor/~4/RKb1zvcAz3w
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the world´s biggest military forces takes steps towards greater gender parity.
Flying ******rs Mohana Singh, Bhawana Kanth and Avani Chaturvedi received their wings on Saturday when they were commissioned into the IAF at a graduation ceremony in the southern city of Hyderabad.
"It is a golden day as for the first time these women are going to join the fighter pilots," Indian Defence Minister Ma**har Parrikar said at the ceremony.
"This will inspire more women to take up the most challenging task in the armed forces. Our long-term objective is to work towards gender parity in the armed forces.
"Prime Minister Narendra Modi also congratulated the women, saying it was "a matter of immense pride and joy" to have the first female fighter pilots.
"More power to them," he tweeted.
Only a handful of countries such as Britain, the United States, Israel and neighbouring Pakistan, have allowed women into the cockpits of fighter jets.
India had until **w kept women out of that role, and away from frontline warships and ground combat, citing concerns over their vulnerability if captured and their physical and mental ability to handle the stress of such deployments.
The country´s defence forces began recruiting women to **n-medical positions in 1992, yet only 2.5 percent of its more than 1 million personnel are women - most of them administrators, intelligence ******rs, doctors, nurses or dentists.
In recent years, Indian courts have pushed the military to widen opportunities for women, by giving them permanent commissions, for example, instead of limiting them to five-year terms.
Modi´s government an**unced last year it would bring women into fighting roles and approved IAF plans for women pilots to fly warplanes from June 2017 on a three-year experimental basis.
Indian President Pranab Mukherjee in February went a step further an**uncing the country would induct women in all fighter streams of the armed forces in the future.
Defence Minister Parrikar confirmed plans to extend combat roles for women in the army and navy, adding it would take time.
http://feeds.feedburner.com/~r/com/YEor/~4/RKb1zvcAz3w
أكثر... (http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/com/YEor/~3/RKb1zvcAz3w/129845-Indias-first-female-fighter-pilots-pave-for-more-women-in-combat)