Air India sets new record as its all-women crew flies around the world

Just ahead of International Women's Day, Air India has written to Guinness to notify them of a new and novel record they have set, one of deploying a flight around the world with an all-female crew.

According to a PTI report, the flight had women staffers and professionals manning, or rather 'womanning', every aspect of the flight, right from the cockpit to the cabin crew, and even the ground staff, the Air Traffic Controllers and the check-in personnel.

They took off from New Delhi last Monday to fly over the Pacific Ocean to San Francisco, and returned to New Delhi by flying across the other half of the globe, over the Atlantic, on Friday.

Upon the successful completion of this voyage, which they believe to be the first of this nature, Air India applied to Guinness World Records to be recognised for the feat and for setting a world record.

In another step towards supporting their women patrons as well as employees, Air India has also started reserving six seats in the third row in their economy class for women, after reports of harassment faced by passengers as well as crew came to the fore. Again, they claim to be the first and only airline in India, and possibly the world, to have such a provision.