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Women In Aviation: India has 15% Women Pilots, Three Times The Global Average; Dr Harpreet Singh On Leading From Within

India`s first woman airline CEO on why safety, success and self-awareness belong in the same conversation

Dr. Harpreet A. De. Singh.

Dr. Harpreet A. De. Singh.

It is a number that surprises many travellers. India's Civil Aviation Minister said in August 2026 that women make up around 15% of the country's pilots, against about 5% globally, and that the government wants to raise women's participation across the aviation workforce to 25%. DGCA data tabled in Parliament counted 1,767 women among 11,775 pilots at six major airlines. Behind those figures are people who went first. One of them is Dr. Harpreet A. De. Singh.

Dr. Harpreet is India's first woman airline CEO. The journey began as Air India's first woman pilot selectee and later made Dr. Harpreet the first DGCA-approved woman Chief of Flight Safety. "Opportunities should be shaped by capability, commitment, and courage rather than gender," Dr. Harpreet says.

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