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Journalism of Courage
On October 12, an Air India Express flight bound for Sharjah from Tiruchirapalli, with 141 passengers on board, experienced a technical snag. This meant the flight had to circle in the sky to reduce fuel weight before attempting to land back at Tiruchirapalli.
The pilots managed to do this safely and landed around 3 hours after takeoff. Social media users praised the pilots of the aircraft, and even the Tamil Nadu governor posted a thankyou note on X to the pilots for the safe landing.
Shrikrishna and Rukmini Shitole’s oldest daughter Maitreyee was one of the pilots flying the aircraft. Originally from Daund, the Shitoles are parents to two daughters and a son. Shrikrishna runs a transport and crane business while Rukmini manages a paper tube manufacturing factory in Khed-Shivapur. “When she was in class 5 or 6, we took a flight from Delhi to Pune. The aircraft was being flown by a woman pilot and the staff let her into the cockpit to meet her. There and then she said – “Even I want to fly a plane”, and decided she would be a pilot,” said Shrikrishna talking about Maitreyee.
Maitreyee completed her schooling from Sinhgad Springdale. Signs of her brilliance were always visible: she had been on a trip to NASA after class 10 where they conducted basic astronaut training for children, and she bagged top ranking there, too.
However, Maitreyee faced a hitch in her journey. When she was studying science after class 10, the family was told that only those with a perfect vision (without spectacles) can become pilots. Maitreyee used spectacles, and because the internet was not so accessible at that time, getting accurate information was not easy. “In Maratha households like ours, generally, daughters are married off at 21-22 years, so there was no one to guide her. She gave up on her dream and opted for a BSc in Physics from Fergusson college. However, later she got to know that her eye sight was within the acceptable range. So she went for pilot training after graduation,” said Shrikrishna. Maitreyee got her commercial pilot licence from Mainland Aviation College in Dunedin, New Zealand.
On October 12 when the flight to Sharjah faced a technical glitch, Maitreyee’s younger sister was leaving for Germany to study. Her parents were busy seeing their younger daughter off, and the family was completely unaware of the situation unfolding in the air. After the plane landed, Maitreyee called her mother and broke the news to her.
“My legs froze for a minute listening to what she told me. She then added her father to the call and shared the news with him,” said Rukmini.
“We are very proud. With patience and a cool mind she landed the plane. We received over 500 calls and God knows how many messages asking about our daughter,” said Shrikrishna. “When she got a job as a pilot, both of us told her she must keep in mind the number of people she is responsible for while flying a plane. We are proud that she proved this today,” added Rukmini with a smile.
