Inaugural San Franciso-Bengaluru flight with all-women cockpit crew successfully lands at Bengaluru

The record-breaking Air India Flight AI-176 originated from San Francisco has successfully landed at Bengaluru International Airport. It is the first Indian flight operated by an all-women crew, the longest commercial flight in the world, went over the North Pole and took the Atlantic route to reach Bengaluru.

Bengaluru: The first Indian flight operated by all-women crew landed at Kempegowda International Airport on Wednesday in Bengaluru from San Francisco, flying over the North Pole and covering a distance of about 16,000 kilometres. It is the first Indian flight to undertake a non-stop 17-hour journey.

According to Air India officials, the flight number AI-176 left San Francisco on Saturday at 8.30 PM (local time) and arrived at 3.45 AM on Monday.

An all-women cockpit crew, operating Air India's inaugural San Francisco-Bengaluru flight, went over the North Pole and took the Atlantic route and reached the Karnataka capital at the other end of the world, officials said.

Notably, Air India flight completed the journey well before time, making it the longest commercial flight in the world operated by any other airline in India, officials added.

"Today, we created world history by not only flying over the North Pole but also by having all women pilots who successfully did it. We are extremely happy and proud to be part of it. This route has saved 10 tonnes of fuel," said Captain Zoya Aggarwal.

"It was an exciting experience since it was never done before. It took almost 17 hours to reach here," said another pilot, Shivani Manhas.

Meanwhile, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi took to the Twitter and congratulated the women crew.

"Congratulations to the all-women cockpit crew for completing Air India’s longest flight from San Francisco to Bengaluru over the North Pole. You have made the country proud," he said.