When ‘Kargil Girl’, Gunjan Saxena, the first Indian Air Force Woman Pilot, was asked about her feelings about flying a plane, she said that the machine would not know whether a man was flying it or a woman was flying it. The sky was the limit for Gunjan as her role in the 1999 Kargil war was of utmost importance. It is said that once a fauji, always a fauji. There is an array of lessons we all can learn from Gunjan Saxena. She was 5 when girls of her age used to play with toys, and she had made up her mind to become a pilot. Indeed! The sky was her limit.
Who is Flight Lieutenant Gunjan Saxena?
Flight Lieutenant Gunjan Saxena had made the entire Indian Air Force proud when she became the first lady officer who went to combat. Gunjan created history back when the Kargil War took place in 1999, and she, with her ace flying skills, flew a Cheetah plane in the war zone and saved many officers. Gunjan was born in Lucknow and came to Delhi and studied Physics from Hansraj College. Gunjan completed her graduation and then became a part of the Delhi Flying Club located in Safdarjung. She did her aviation training from there and then, along with 24 other women officers, joined the Indian Air Force. Gunjan, along with the 24 women pilots, was the first batch of women who were trained in the IAF.
