The paradox of women pilots in India
The probability of getting on a plane and that the pilot who greets us over the loudspeaker is a woman is much higher in India than anywhere else in the world.
There the aviators represent the 11% of the group ; the figure may seem low at first, but it is well above the global average (in Spain , without going further, 4% is not reached ). A phenomenon that the commander of Air India Anny Divya explains to us.
“If there are more aviators in India, it is because we have a very strong family fabric” . The typical extended family, with several generations living together under the same domestic unit.
"The woman can travel while the mothers-in-law and fathers-in-law take care of the children and the home." And, if not, the companies provide them with a childcare service and flexible hours so that mothers can spend more time with their children (fathers are not mentioned in the contract).
"Also, it's a well paid job , with which women can earn a good living”. Under this perspective, more and more girls are encouraged. “To motivate, piloting academies use the image of aviators in their advertising, and airlines celebrate all kinds of events on the occasion of the International Women's Day ”. As flights made up of an exclusively female crew, from the person in charge of the ramp to the stewardess.
" I don't want to die, I don't want to die! If you are unable to take care of your home, how will you take care of an airplane?” This hysteric was a passenger of IndiGo Airlines ; he learned that a woman was at the controls of the device and suffered a sudden attack of gynophobia.
“My passengers are also surprised to see me, but positively. Many are impressed that I am a commander, they often come up to shake my hand, wish me good luck and take selfies with me. They also write to me a lot on social networks, telling me that they would love to travel on my plane.” At the age of thirty she became the youngest pilot of a Boeing 777. "The largest and most powerful twinjet in the world." A tome. "You can fly without refueling from India to the United States."
And this happens in the same country where a girl is raped every fifteen minutes. “Once a passenger was disrespectful to me at the check-in counter; I was off duty, checking in as a tourist…” Cases of harassment have increased, according to the latest report from the National Crime Records Bureau. “ It is a matter of education, awareness and denunciation ; three factors that, in my opinion, increase when training and working in a sector like ours”.
Air India recently added a row of seats reserved for women on its internal flights . "But not for safety, but out of respect . It is a way to encourage single women and young women to travel alone and to be more autonomous.”
The plane gives them wings, freedom. "He gave me knowledge and financial independence to fly higher . My mother was not able to continue her studies because they had no money at home, but she has always had a very free nature, and she has taught me more values than I have read in books”.
She was his inspiration. she and the sky . “As a child she dreamed of flying like a bird through the clouds, and my mother told me that, then, she had to be a pilot. Other relatives and friends of the family were against it, because it was not considered a job for women, but she always supported me”.
Anny Divya
The first time she got on an airplane was to fly it. . “When I landed after twenty-four hours in the air, I still felt like I was flying, even sleeping that night. It's better than I ever imagined ; I love my job: flying by myself, the pride of wearing a commander's uniform, the responsibility that comes with it, and the benefit of traveling so much. ”.
When she was in Mallorca doing internships, she did not coincide with any of the two hundred aviators in Spain. The probability was too low.