Aviation experts predict bright future for women pilots, drone women pilots in India

HYDERABAD: Systematic intervention is the need of the hour in the drone space, Rajiv Bansal, former secretary, Ministry of Civil Aviation, Govt of India and CEO, NISG (National Institute of Smart Government) while moderating a panel discussion on 'Flight to the Future: Drone Revolutionising the Aviation Landscape’ on day-two of Wings India 2024.

Bansal said that the drone sector was the most happening space. “A lot of drone pilots are being trained now. Several hundreds and thousands of drone pilot licenses have been issued,” he said. Speaking on the role of women pilots, he stated that currently there were 18 per cent women drone pilots out of the 1,600 licenses issued last year. Since India set a global benchmark in civil aviation, the same can be repeated in drones in terms of several drone women pilots, he added.

SC Sharma, joint director of the Quality Council of India, emphasised quality control and added that the cost of attaining good quality products was much lesser than a poor-quality product. Quality and safety play a very important role, he noted.

Tan Kah Han, chief technology officer and senior director for Unmanned Systems Group, Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore (CAAS), said that Hyderabad's population was 60 per cent of Singapore's. “We are a small country and Singapore needs drones to improve the way we work, live and teach. Drone is no longer a toy, it is much more,” he said.

Deepak Bharadwaj, director and co-founder, ToTechWorld Aviation spoke about connecting technology with farmers and their pioneering work in the manufacture of agri drones and elevating their earning capacity of farmers by way of better spray capacity.

The panel delved into the transformative potential of drones and their impact on air travel, transportation and logistics both in India and abroad.

In another panel on ‘Women in Aviation - fostering gender-neutral opportunities in aviation’, Vikram Dev Dutt. DG, DGCSA, said that greater women participation in aviation was a game changer and force multiplier. He along with Rubina Ali, joint secretary, Ministry of Civil Aviation, Govt of India, moderated the panel discussion.

The session aimed to facilitate discussions, share inspiring narratives and develop strategies that will create a more inclusive aviation industry. Rubina said that once male-dominated bastions of civil aviation now had women pilots, aeronautical engineers and women in many other positions that she never dreamt of.

Anju Madeka, CEO of Durgapur Airport, said that she had to prove to stay competitive in the industry. The future in aviation is women, she added. Philip Cumming, Deputy Minister Counsellor, the Embassy of the United States of America, said that India had set a benchmark in women pilots while the world average was 8 per cent.