Daijiworld Media Network - New Delhi

New Delhi, Aug 6: Squadron Leader Bhawana Kanth has become the first woman officer in the Indian Air Force (IAF) to successfully complete the prestigious Fighter Combat Leader (FCL) course conducted at the Tactics and Air Combat Development Establishment (TACDE) in Gwalior.

The Fighter Combat Leader qualification is regarded as one of the most demanding courses for fighter pilots in the IAF. Only a select few aircrew members, reportedly around one in every hundred, are chosen for the nearly five-month programme, which trains pilots in advanced air combat tactics, weapons employment and combat manoeuvring. Those who complete the course return to their squadrons as specialists responsible for shaping frontline combat strategies.

The achievement marks another milestone in Kanth's pioneering career. In June 2016, she was commissioned into the IAF along with Avani Chaturvedi and Mohana Singh as the country's first women fighter pilots after the government opened the fighter stream to women on an experimental basis.

In May 2019, Kanth became the first Indian woman qualified to undertake daytime fighter combat missions while flying the MiG-21 Bison. She later transitioned to the Su-30 MKI fighter aircraft. She has also been part of the Republic Day parade tableau and was honoured with the Nari Shakti Puraskar in 2020.

Hailing from Darbhanga in Bihar, Kanth is an engineering graduate and has continued to achieve several milestones in her military career. Mohana Singh, who was commissioned alongside her, later became the first woman to fly the indigenous Tejas fighter aircraft in a frontline squadron.

The latest Fighter Combat Leader course also focused on evolving warfare concepts, including the growing role of unmanned systems, long-range precision weapons and modern combat tactics, reflecting lessons drawn from recent conflicts such as the West Asia war and Operation Sindoor.

TACDE serves as the IAF's premier institution for developing combat doctrine and tactical procedures. Besides conducting the Fighter Combat Leader course, it evaluates newly inducted aircraft, radars and weapon systems before their induction into operational service. The establishment also conducts the Helicopter Combat Leader and Master Fighter Controller courses, covering air-to-air and air-to-ground operations, electronic warfare and coordination with surface-to-air defence systems.

Kanth's accomplishment comes nearly two months after another landmark for women in the IAF. In May, Squadron Leader Saanya became the first woman officer to receive the Category-A Qualified Flying Instructor rating, the service's highest instructional qualification reserved for instructors authorised to train and assess other flying instructors.

The IAF first inducted women into its flying branch in 1994, when Flight Lieutenant Harita Kaur Deol became the first woman officer to fly solo. It later saw Padmavathy Bandopadhyay become the first woman Air Marshal.

For over two decades, women officers were restricted to flying transport aircraft and helicopters until the fighter stream was opened in 2016. Since then, several milestones have followed. In 2018, Avani Chaturvedi became the first Indian woman to fly a fighter aircraft solo in a MiG-21. Mohana Singh later joined a frontline Tejas squadron, while Squadron Leader Shivangi Singh became the first woman to fly the Rafale fighter aircraft with the Golden Arrows Squadron at Ambala in 2020.

Women officers have also earned recognition for operational excellence. Squadron Leader Minty Agarwal became the first woman to receive the Yudh Seva Medal for her role as a fighter controller during the aerial engagement following the 2019 Balakot strike. More recently, Wing Commander Vyomika Singh was among the officers who represented the armed forces during official government briefings on last year's military confrontation with Pakistan.