Russian Ladies Take to the Skies on Women’s Day
One of the more interesting events celebrating International Women’s Day in Russia on Thursday was an air show featuring amateur women pilots. Hosted by the Helicopter Industry Association and Sky Vision aviation club, the air show was the first ever national show dedicated to female pilots.
The show featured helicopters, planes and parachutists flying of Stupino Aerodrome just south of Moscow. Members of the Women Aviators club spoke about their experiences as pilots and encouraged women to learn to fly if they were interested, especially since there are no longer any restrictions against women studying flight at the academies as there were in the past.
There were also commemorative awards presented to female veterans from the Soviet Air Force that served during World War II. Stalin ordered the all-women regiments to be formed as a shortage of men was hampering the war effort. The veterans told stories of their flying adventures during the war and spoke of the respect they had earned from their male peers.
One problem with learning to fly now is the cost – in the Soviet days, flight lessons were subsidized. Now it costs much more money, which is limiting the number of female pilots and amateur flying clubs. Still, many participants in Thursday’s event are optimistic about the future of Russian women pilots and hopefully flying in the military and as commercial pilots.
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