Dornier pilot of INAS 318 Lt Cdr Divya Sharma blazes new trail for Indian Navy

New Delhi: Lt Cdr Divya Sharma, Dornier pilot of an elite naval air squadron in the Andaman and Nicobar Command (ANC), has become the "first woman" to be a Qualified Flying Instructor of the Indian Navy.

In a post on X on Wednesday, the ANC also shared some photographs.

"Lt Cdr Divya Sharma, Dornier pilot of INAS 318 at #INSUtkrosh #ANC, creates history as 1st woman Qualified Flying Instructor of #IndianNavy! Trailblazing skies & inspiring generations. #NariShakti #WomenInUniform #QFI #NavalComponent #ANC," it posted on the micro-blogging platform.

INS Utkrosh is a naval air station at Port Blair, Andaman and Nicobar Islands.

INAS 318 is an elite naval air squadron in the Andaman and Nicobar Command, continuously engaged in a surveillance role since its commissioning on March 8, 1984, the defence ministry earlier said.

The squadron commenced its journey with the induction of Islander aircraft, which were replaced by Dornier aircraft in 1999.

The Dornier aircraft is capable of carrying out long-range maritime surveillance using state-of-the-art maritime patrol radars, it said.