Taking the Atlantic route, the flight covered a distance of approximately 16,000 kilometers. It flew over the North Pole and reached Karnataka, the capital on the other side of the world.
Flight number AI176 left San Francisco on Saturday at 8:30 p.m. local time and arrived at 3:07 a.m., Air India tweeted today.
FlyAI: Welcome home Capt Zoya Agarwal, Capt Papagiri Thanmei, Capt Akanksha and Capt Shivani after completing a la… https://t.co/7PstiJXrT2
– Air India (@airindiain) 1610318521000
Air India saluted the female pilots who completed a historic journey and also congratulated the passengers of the AI176 for participating in this historic moment.
“It was an exciting experience because it has never been done before. It took nearly 17 hours to get here, ”said Shivani Manhas, one of the four pilots who operated Air India’s inaugural San Francisco-Bengaluru flight.
“Today we made world history not only by flying over the North Pole, but also by having all the female pilots who have done so successfully. We are extremely happy and proud to be a part of it. This route saved 10 tonnes of fuel, ”said Captain Zoya Aggarwal speaking with ANI.
It was the longest commercial flight in the world to be operated by Air India or any other airline in India.
The total flight time on this route was more than 17 hours depending on wind speed, Air India said in a statement on the eve of the historic flight.
The crew members were: Captain Zoya Aggarwal, Captain Papagari Thanmai, Captain Akansha Sonaware and Captain Shivani Manhas.
