Children learn from your example: Veteran pilot and mother's message to frontline workers

When pilots were asked to gear up for the Vande Bharat mission at the peak of the first pandemic wave last year, senior IndiGo pilot Capt Ranjana Velu readily reported for duty.

The rising Covid cases and the still unravelling consequences did not rattle this daughter of a military family.

“My family has served the Army for at least six generations,” Capt Ranjana told DH during her break between non-stop flights. “We have been trained to handle the most challenging situations.”

A mother of two teenage daughters whose husband is still serving in the Army, Ranjana admits that the last few months have been challenging.

“I have been part of repatriation flights,” the Bengaluru-based pilot revealed. “In the initial days, the Vande Bharat mission, carried out mostly from the Middle East, had been long and we were stuck in unknown countries for days together. But our mission was to bring our people back to safety and nothing else mattered."

New normal

Trained to follow standard operating procedures, the flight crew had to reassure passengers about their safety and help them stay calm. “We were relieved when normal flight operations resumed a few months later,” Ranjana said. “Landing the passengers safely and ensuring they followed all procedures was a new normal we were dealing with.”

She recalled safely moving people between destinations dressed in PPEs and wearing masks, gloves and face shields.

As a frontline worker, Ranjana made lifestyle adjustments and changed her food habits. “I consciously exercised longer and ate healthy. I also made sure whatever little junk food brought home by my daughters was stopped. The positive adjustments we made helped us handle stress at work better and develop a positive attitude to the situation.”

The two teenagers have been Ranjana’s biggest support system through these turbulent times. “My daughters would be waiting to help me change and sanitise when I returned from work,” she said. “They would bring a set of spare clothes, clean towels and immediately dump my clothes in the washing machine. They sometimes keep a hot meal ready as well.”

Ranjana asked all frontline workers who are also mothers like her to lead by example. “Doing it yourself is the only way you can teach children what you want them to be and how you want them to live,” she said. “You lead by example and your children will follow.”