Chinese Air Force gets first batch of 16 female fighter pilots

The Chinese Air Force's first batch of 16 female fighter pilots recently graduated from the No. 3 Air Force Flight Academy of the PLA. They passed with excellent academic records in five examinations including flying techniques after 44 months of training.

The 16 pilots were conferred the military rank of first lieutenant in the Air Force on April 2 and granted pilot certificates and badges, symbolizing their status as pilots. Between the ages of 21 and 24, they are among the eighth recruitment of female pilot students carried out by the Air Force in 2005.

The first batch of female fighter pilots will soon start training for the National Day military parade and represent the Air Force's female fighter pilots for the first time in flying fighter planes for military review, according to an official with the Air Force.

Members of the first batch of female fighter pilots have each completed 28 months of training in basic flying instruction, parachuting and wilderness survival at the Chinese Aeronautical university of the China People Liberation Air Force, and also finished 6 months of primary flight training on primary trainers at the No. 1 Air Force Flight Academy with an average training time of 83 hours for each trainee. Afterwards, they had 10 months of advanced flight training on fighter planes at the No. 3 Air Force Flight Academy with an average training time of 135 hours for each trainee.

Officials of the Air Force noted that the Air Force will make more efforts to cultivate female fighter pilots, aiming to maintain a certain number and scale of Chinese female fighter pilots and will make all pilot positions available to women. At the same time, the Air Force will carry out new explorations on content and modes of training, so as to continuously enhance the quality of training for female fighter pilots.

Currently, only 16 countries in the world, including China, the US and the UK, have female pilots enlisted in their troops. Of them, countries such as China, the US, the UK, Germany, Spain, Israel and Pakistan have already cultivated female fighter pilots.