All-women cockpit crew to fly inaugural San Francisco-Bengaluru flight

The aerial distance between San Francisco and Bengaluru is one of the longest in the world.

An all-women cockpit crew will operate the inaugural San Francisco-Bengaluru flight on Saturday, Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri said.

The Indian state-owned carrier has been seeking a buyer for some time now as the government wants to divest its 100 per cent stake in Air India and budget carrier AI Express. (HT File Photo)

The Air India flight will fly on Saturday over the North Pole, taking the Atlantic route to reach Bengaluru, a senior official of the airline said.

“All women cockpit crew consisting of Capt Zoya Aggarwal, Capt Papagari Thanmai, Capt Akansha Sonaware & Capt Shivani Manhas will operate the historic inaugural flight between Bengaluru & San Francisco,” Puri said on Twitter.

The aerial distance between San Francisco and Bengaluru is one of the longest in the world.

“Air India's woman power flies high around the world,” Puri said.

The inaugural flight AI176 will depart from San Francisco in the USA at 8.30 pm (local time) on Saturday and it will land at the Kempegowda International Airport at 3.45 am (local time) on Monday.