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By:

Quaid Najmi

4 January 2025 at 3:26:24 pm

AI’s Maharaja smiles joyfully

All 30 grounded aircrafts now fly Mumbai : Air India’s Maharaja is all pleased as punch at 80. After years of huge costs and efforts, the last of the grounded 30 aircraft – inherited by the Tata Group during the privatization in Jan. 2022 – is now resurrected fully and took to the skies gracefully on Monday.   The aircraft is the gleaming VT-ALL, a Boeing 777-300ER, that was gathering grime since February 2020, and becomes the final among the two-and-half dozen aircraft that have been revved...

AI’s Maharaja smiles joyfully

All 30 grounded aircrafts now fly Mumbai : Air India’s Maharaja is all pleased as punch at 80. After years of huge costs and efforts, the last of the grounded 30 aircraft – inherited by the Tata Group during the privatization in Jan. 2022 – is now resurrected fully and took to the skies gracefully on Monday.   The aircraft is the gleaming VT-ALL, a Boeing 777-300ER, that was gathering grime since February 2020, and becomes the final among the two-and-half dozen aircraft that have been revved up and revived in the past few years, AI official sources said.   It marked a symbolic milestone for Air India itself - founded in 1932 by the legendary Bharat Ratna J. R. R. Tata - which once ruled the roost and was India’s pride in the global skies.   Once renowned for its royal service with the iconic Maharaja welcoming fliers on board, in 1953 it was taken over by the government of India. After years of piling losses, ageing aircraft, decline in operations and standards – almost like a Maharaja turning a pauper - it returned to the Tata Group four years ago.   This time it was not just the aircraft, the brand and the deflated Maharaja coming into the large-hearted Tata Group stables, but a formidable challenge to ensure that the airline could regain its old glory and glitter. Of the total around 190 aircraft in its fleet were 30 – or 15 pc – that had been grounded and neglected for years.   At that time, the late Ratan N. Tata had directed that all these valuable aircraft must be revived as far as possible and join the fleet. Accordingly, the VT-ALL, languishing at Nagpur for nearly five years, was ‘hospitalized’ at the Air India Engineering Service Ltd., its MRO facility in May 2025.   New Avatar Then started a thorough, painstaking nose-to-tail restoration of an unprecedented scale, in which over 3000 critical components were replaced, over 4,000 maintenance tasks executed, besides key structural upgrades like the longeron modification, engines, auxiliary power units, avionics, hydraulics, landing gears and almost every vital system was rebuilt or replaced.   After the repairs, the old aircraft was reborn, under the gaze of the Directorate General of Civil Aviation and technical assistance from Boeing, and the new ‘avatar’ jetliner emerged with the highest global safety standards.   The aircraft cleared all the rigorous checks, a successful test flight, earned the mandatory Airworthiness Review Certificate and then made its maiden commercial flight from Monday, March 16 – after a wait of six years.   Sturdy Fliers Created in 1946 to become an instant global icon, the Air India’s mascot Maharaja now sports a youthful and chic look, a welcome with folded hands, closed eyes, featuring a bejewelled turban, stylish jootis, and a textured kurta in Air India’s new colours. He is prominently visible at various touch-points in a flyer’s journey, such as First Class, exclusive lounges, and luxury products.   Today, he commands a mix fleet of around 190 narrow and wide-body Airbus and Boeing aircraft like : A319, A320, A320neo, A321, A321neo, A350-900 and B787-8, B787-9, B7770200LR, B-777-300ER. With the merger of Vistara and agreements signed for 10 A350 and 90 A320 aircraft, the Maharaja’s fleet is slated to soar to some 570 in the near future.

From Banking to Flying

The nine days of Navratri celebrate goddesses who embody strength in different forms; valour, compassion, creativity, austerity, devotion, justice, protection, forgiveness and wisdom. In our annual Navratri series, we celebrate the lives of nine women who strive to build happy and safe spaces for themselves and those around them.


Part - 5


Name: Captain Saudamini Deshmukh | Where: Mumbai, Maharashtra
Name: Captain Saudamini Deshmukh | Where: Mumbai, Maharashtra

Some women have fancy ambitions from a very young age, and they meticulously chase them, while a few just start with a very unplanned and stereo-typical career, but life ends up having something unique in store for them. They are destined to leave a legacy and one such name is Captain Saudamini Deshmukh who has made a significant mark in India’s aviation history. Saudamini began her professional life not as a pilot, but working with the Bank of India from 1973 to 1979. In 1980, she joined Indian Airlines which later merged to become part of what is today Air India or its successors, embarking on a flying career made her name popular among all Indian homes, especially women she silently kept inspiring through her major milestones. She became the first woman to command a Boeing 737 and later, in 1994, achieved the milestone of becoming the first Indian woman to lead an A320.


She has several feathers in her cap. Her first major milestone was in 1985, when she became the first woman check pilot on the Fokker 27 type aircraft in India. Soon in the same year, she also commanded India’s first all women crew flight on the Fokker F 27 between Kolkata and Silchar. Later in 1988 89, she made the country proud by becoming the first Indian woman captain to command a Boeing 737. In addition to this, later she also commanded an Airbus A320, again marking a first for women in India.


Her contribution to the aviation sector was not limited to being just a pilot but she also showed her excellence in some leadership roles. Saudamini also discharged her duties of Deputy General Manager, Operations in Indian Airlines, a managerial operational post, reflecting her rising stature.


Saudamini broke gender norms in an era when aviation, especially in India, was overwhelmingly male dominated, her command of aircraft and all-women crews sent a powerful message about gender equality in highly technical, high-stakes professions. Speaking to ‘The Perfect Voice’, Captain Ankita Dhanawade, 35, who is with Indigo Airlines said, “When I decided to become a pilot 20 years ago, I searched for women pilots in India in Google search bar. Capt Saudamini Deshmukh’s name was the first one to pop up on the search feed. We tend to follow the path that our family members show us. What about Women wanting to step out and create a new identity? Who do they look upto? I had Captain Saudamini Deshmukh.”


“Thanks to her trailblazing work and milestones I was convinced that my dream was achievable. Not just that, her journey also enlightened us on how we could chase our dream. If she could do it against all odds, I could at least try! In an age with no social media and relevant exposure, her work spoke louder than thunder and she paved the way for young women like me to fulfil a dream of becoming a pilot”, added Dhanawade.


After around thirty years of flying, Saudamini retired from active piloting in 2010, leaving behind a legacy that many Indian women take inspiration from to chase a dream that was once too rare and experimental for a woman to opt for.

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