Sarla Thakral is believed to be the country’s first woman pilot, having flown an aircraft in 1936. However a peep into the The Hindu’ s archives reveals that women staked their claim to being the first to navigate the skies of Madras at least a year earlier.
It was on the 30 of May 1935 that two women — nineteen-year-old Kummudammal and sixteen-year-old Angulia Bai — made aviation history in the city. Determined to learn how to pilot an aircraft, the young women joined the Madras Flying Club to obtain the ‘A’ pilot license. After weeks of training under instructor E.N.V. Everett, the cockpit so far occupied by men, was going to have women in command.
In 1955, it was the turn of an 18-year-old literature student of Presidency College, Usha Ramachandran (now Usha Ragunathan), to carry the legacy forward. She was the only woman to be awarded a scholarship by the Madras Government to train to fly. For Usha, who grew up near the airport as her father M.S Ramachandran was a senior technical officer in the aviation sector, taking to aeroplanes was almost a given. “I used to spend most of my free time walking or cycling on the runway. I was fascinated by planes, and I couldn’t help wanting to fly them. ”
Every other day, Ms. Ragunathan armed with a pair of goggles and a helmet, would soar in her Tiger Moth looking down at the city from up above. “Often, I used to be late for my classes in college, but I never told people it was because I was flying. I was too scared they would stop me from going. ”
For Ms. Ragunathan, being certified as a trained pilot was more important than completing her college education after getting married. “I quit my studies after getting married, but did not let go of flying. I did not want to waste the opportunity I was offered.”
Under the tutelage of her instructors Mr. Khan and K.V Ramachandran, Ms. Ragunathan passed the solo flying test and earned an ‘A’ license in 1956. Over the years, flying has taken a back seat. However the whirr of an aircraft still leaves 77-year-old Mrs. Ragunathan excited.
“The wind against your face, the butterflies in your stomach as you land and the adrenalin — it is such a thrill,” she says.
