Inspector Bhawna Chaudhary Makes History as First Female Flight Engineer in BSF Air Wing

In a significant breakthrough for gender diversity within India's paramilitary forces, Inspector Bhawna Chaudhary has become the first female flight engineer in the Border Security Force (BSF) Air Wing. This historic achievement follows her successful completion of a comprehensive in-house training program alongside four male colleagues.

During a ceremony in New Delhi, BSF Director General Daljit Singh Chawdhary awarded flying badges to all five officers, marking the end of their demanding training course. The two-month ab-initio training, fully organized by BSF Air Wing instructors, commenced in August 2025. The officers accumulated 130 hours of technical and operational training, which included hands-on experience with aerial missions and relief sorties during recent flood operations in Punjab and other regions.

The launch of this training initiative aims to address the critical shortage of flight engineers in the BSF's Mi-17 helicopter squadron. While earlier batches of BSF engineers were trained with the Indian Air Force (IAF), Inspector Chaudhary and her peers are part of the first group to undergo this newly approved in-house training, sanctioned by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA).

Since its establishment in 1969, the BSF Air Wing has operated under the Ministry of Home Affairs, providing essential aviation support not only to the BSF but also to other paramilitary and emergency response units like the National Security Guard (NSG) and the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF).

The unit maintains a varied fleet, including the Embraer jet for VIP assignments and multiple helicopter models such as Mi-17 1V, Mi-17 V5, Cheetah, and ALH Dhruv.

The induction of Inspector Bhawna Chaudhary as the BSF's first female flight engineer marks a proud moment for the organization and underscores the growing participation of women in India's security and aviation fields.