In the history of the Indian Air Force, who became the first woman officer to qualify as a flight engineer?

Introduction / Context:
The Indian Air Force has been steadily opening more roles to women officers, marking important milestones in aviation and defence history. One such achievement is the induction of the first woman flight engineer, a role that involves managing and monitoring technical systems on board aircraft. This question checks whether you can correctly identify the woman officer who first qualified as a flight engineer, which is a key fact in recent Indian defence and gender empowerment current affairs.

Given Data / Assumptions:
• The question is about the Indian Air Force (IAF).
• It asks specifically for the first woman flight engineer.
• Options include several well known women officers associated with flying roles.
• You need to select the correct name among these options.

Concept / Approach:
Different women officers in the IAF have achieved different firsts, such as becoming fighter pilots or helicopter pilots. Avani Chaturvedi, Bhawana Kanth, and Mohana Singh are known as part of the first batch of women fighter pilots. Hina Jaiswal, however, is recognised as the first woman to qualify as a flight engineer in the Indian Air Force. Understanding each officer’s specific achievement is essential to answering this type of question accurately.

Step-by-Step Solution:
Step 1: List the firsts you already know: Avani, Bhawana, and Mohana are associated with fighter pilot roles. Step 2: Recall that Hina Jaiswal completed the flight engineer course and was inducted as the first woman flight engineer in the IAF. Step 3: Compare this recall with the names given in the options. Step 4: Eliminate names you associate with different roles such as fighter pilot or helicopter pilot rather than flight engineer. Step 5: Select “Hina Jaiswal” as the correct answer.

Verification / Alternative check:
You can verify your answer by remembering news reports and official IAF statements that highlighted Hina Jaiswal’s induction as a significant step for women in technical branches of the Air Force. Those reports often contrasted her achievement with earlier milestones of women fighter pilots, thus clearly distinguishing the roles. No such reports described Avani Chaturvedi, Bhawana Kanth, or Mohana Singh as the first woman flight engineer, confirming that your identification of Hina Jaiswal is correct.

Why Other Options Are Wrong:
Avani Chaturvedi: Known as one of the first women fighter pilots in the IAF, but not the first woman flight engineer.
Bhawana Kanth: Also part of the first batch of women fighter pilots, so this option is linked to a different first and is incorrect here.
Mohana Singh: Another pioneer woman fighter pilot; her achievement is different from the flight engineer milestone mentioned in the question.
Gunjan Saxena: Famous as a woman helicopter pilot and Kargil war veteran, but not associated with being the first woman flight engineer.

Common Pitfalls:
Because many pioneering women officers were reported in the media around similar periods, students sometimes merge these facts and incorrectly assign the same distinction to multiple names. Another pitfall is to remember only that these officers are trailblazers without linking each individual to her specific role. To avoid confusion, it is helpful to mentally pair each name with her specific first, such as fighter pilot, flight engineer, or helicopter pilot, rather than remembering them as a single group.

Final Answer:
The first woman officer of the Indian Air Force to qualify as a flight engineer is Hina Jaiswal.