Captain Aarohi Pandit, a 23-year-old pilot, from Mumbai, from has become the first one to cross the Atlantic Ocean solo in a Light Sports Aircraft (LSA), exciting her aviation circles, family and friends on Tuesday.
She attained victory over night when she landed her small-size aircraft at Iqaluit Airport i Canada, after an exhausting 3,000 km long flight, under extreme and adverse weather conditions following a take-off from Wick, Scotland (United Kingdom).
Aarohi Pandit is a commercial pilot who holds a LSA licence. She and her best friend Keithair Misquitta left India on the Women Empower (WE) Expedition in a tiny aircraft christened ‘Mahi’ in 2018.
‘Mahi’ is a mini, single-engine Sinus 912 weighing, 400 kg, which is approximately equivalent to a Bullet motorcycle, manufactured by Pipistrel of Slovenia, and firstly the LSA registered by ( DGCA ) – Directorate-General of Civil Aviation of India.
Aarohi and her friend, Keithair flew across Punjab, Rajasthan and Gujarat in India, before crossing over Pakistan, Iran, Serbia, Turkey, Slovenia, France, Germany, and UK.
Though she admitted certain sectors in the long flight were rough, the “beauty of the ocean and islands” were breathtaking and would do it all over again in a heartbeat. She is a fan of the legendary American aviator, Amelia Earheart. Amelia, was the first woman to fly a solo transatlantic flight in a big aircraft, in May 20, 1932.
This record has made our country proud as it takes a lot of courage to fly over several places, for a long duration of time. Her partner Keithar Misquitta said, “you have to work really hard to get those three stripes in the sky. You can only think of sitting in the cockpit once the airline is cleaned first. We would go the flying club at 4.30 in the morning to train ourselves.”
Before her final ride, she underwent a careful seven-month training programme.. She was trained for extreme weather conditions, oceanic and high-altitude flying along with varied physical and mental exercises.
She has set a high bench mark and has made several girls dream of flying high in the sky. She and her fellow piglet will be the best inspiration for several girls out there.
