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First women fighter pilots inducted into Indian Air Force

Xinhua, June 18, 2016 Adjust font size:

In a landmark move, three women fighter pilots were commissioned into the Indian Air Force on Saturday.

The three women cadets were formally inducted into the Air Force as fighter pilots at the Air Force Academy in Hyderabad in the presence of Indian Defense Minister Manohar Parrikar.

After getting commissioned, the three women fighter pilots -- Bhawana Kanth, Mohana Singh and Avani Chaturvedi -- will undergo a one-year training to enter a combat jet's cockpit.

"No concessions for us. Physical fitness or mental robustness, the tests are the same," Singh said.

The trio, all in their mid-20s, were actually part of a six-member women team that competed for getting inducted into the Air Force as fighter pilots -- three others could not make it this time.

India for the first time allowed the entry of female cadets into fighter cockpit in October last year after the Defense Ministry gave its nod to an Air Force scheme to take in women combat pilots. Endit