Are there women pilots in civil aviation. Women in civil aviation

To the post of co-pilot in November. This is the first female pilot in a Belarusian airline. Passengers who have noticed her in the cockpit window are trying to take a picture with their phone right from the plane's gangway. Where did she come from in Belavia? How did you break into a stereotypically male profession? Where is the courage to take responsibility for hundreds of passengers on a flight?

TUT.BY asked Svetlana her questions, and she patiently answered them.

Svetlana Eremenko, 28 years old. Graduated from St. Petersburg State University civil aviation in the specialty "flight operation of civil aircraft". She began her career at Pskovavia, on An-24/An-26 aircraft. Then she worked at Transaero, underwent retraining on the Boeing-737NG - it is on such an aircraft that she now flies in the Belarusian airline.

“They took me seriously here”, or where did Svetlana come from in Belavia

- And I sent a resume (laughs. - TUT.BY). But I have been to Belarus before: even when I worked at Pskovavia on the An-26, we had several flights from Minsk. We drove here in a company car, and then we flew.

Prior to Belavia, she worked at Transaero. There I underwent retraining for a specific type of aircraft: both theoretical and in simulators. But, unfortunately, I didn’t have time to fly there (the Russian carrier Transaero went bankrupt last year. - TUT.BY).

How do pilots get hired? There is a vacancy for a “pilot”, if everything suits you and you are an airline, then you go to work. In general, I sent my resume to several companies. But Belavia was the first to answer me - and I immediately came here. I think I could go here, even if they were not the first to answer. Now I will explain why.

In some Russian companies there were very funny dialogues. You call and ask: “Hello, you have a vacancy for a pilot. What are your requirements?" In response: "Well, the level." “There is a level, but what are the conditions? What can you offer?". They say to me: "Let him call." I ask: “Who is it?”. "Well, who are you calling for - let him call." I answer that I am calling for myself. Me: “But we don’t have girls.” “Well, I don’t ask if you have girls. I'm calling for a job." Me: “We don’t have female pilots and never will.” That is, sometimes already on the phone such an attitude. And in Belarus there was absolutely no: “What?! Young woman?!". I was taken seriously here, as once in Transaero. This is what I liked.

And I also have a great-grandmother on my father's side - Belarusian. Her fate brought her to Siberia at the time of the Stolypin reform. Maybe the blood called?

Childhood on a small northern airfield

- I was born in Yakutia, in a tiny village - Khonuu. The only way to get there is by plane. We had a small Moma airfield there. When I was little, any greeter could approach the plane at our airfield. The plane will fly, and we, the children, if they allow it, will crawl into the cabin and scout everything.

My dad is an aviation specialist in the field of radio engineering. My father wanted to become a pilot, he suffered from this since childhood, but it didn’t work out because his eyesight was bad. Mom, before she met dad, was far from aviation: she graduated from a culinary school in Tashkent and came to work as a cook in the north. Then dad passed his love on to her, so mom went to study as a meteorologist, worked at a weather station, and then graduated and became an aviation security engineer.

We spent a lot of time at the airport as children. Recently, dad admitted that sometimes he even left us there for the whole day if he had to go somewhere on business.

To the question: “What will you be when you grow up?” - For some reason, from the age of three or four, I answered very seriously: "A fighter pilot." But, of course, they only touched me.

Until my third grade, we lived in a village in Yakutia, then dad nevertheless transferred us to Irkutsk, to the city.

The path to the helm

- When I graduated from school, to be honest, I didn’t really believe that it would be possible to break into the pilots. I entered in 2004 - then the girl had to receive separate permit to study at the Faculty of Flight Operations. I wrote to the rector to be enrolled as an exception.

After eleven classes, she immediately flew to St. Petersburg - to enter the university, which was then called the Academy of Civil Aviation. I was not afraid to go far from home. This is normal if you really want to, and even more so if you were given a chance and allowed to study.

At first, she entered not as a pilot, but as a navigator. There were only paid places for the pilot, and my family, unfortunately, could not pay for such an expensive study. At first, I hoped to transfer to the pilot already during my studies, when the budget places were freed up, but I never waited. I studied full-time as a navigator, and in absentia - as a pilot. I flew in the flying club. Therefore, now I have two higher educations, both flying. By the way, I also managed to work as a navigator - in Pskovavia.

It was interesting to study. She lived in a hostel, the scholarship was a penny - three hundred rubles. But flight specialties: dispatchers, pilots, navigators and ground navigators were given food stamps. And the coupons were as much as two thousand rubles. You could collect milk and bread for them at home, at the university you could eat on them. Some guys had enough coupons so much that they also sold them (laughs. - TUT.BY).

I worked as a waitress, because I had to raise money for flights - still not for free. Then I started to solve coursework for the guys - also a part-time job.

When they found out that I was studying at the University of Civil Aviation, the first question was: "For a flight attendant?" Nodding: "To the stewardess, yes."

A pilot girl is always a lot of attention, which, to be honest, I don’t really like. I understand that the fact of a woman in aviation is very interesting to everyone. You have to answer the same questions. Sometimes I was so bored that I came up with different answers to at least somehow amuse myself.

I learned to fly before I learned to drive

Why did you want to become a pilot? Mmm... Have you been in the cockpit? How do you feel? And when do you own this car? And when you pull it towards you, it soars up - and you understand that this colossus is in your hands and that you are driving it ... It seems to me that people who drive a car for the first time have such delight. Those who have a predisposition to communicate with technology will understand me.

By the way, I learned to fly before I could drive a car. I love to drive, but I'm new to this. By car I do not like to exceed the speed, I like to control everything. I like that the people who travel with me feel comfortable.

For the first time I sat at the helm of an airplane on my own in the eighth year. It was sunny, which in itself is a rarity in St. Petersburg. I just came to fly, and they decided to give me a gift before Aviation Day: “You are ready, come on yourself.” It was exciting: hands were trembling, legs. But she didn't get too scared. Everything went great, because before that I flew quite a lot and watched the work of the pilots. Then I noticed that everyone feels the plane differently, communicates with it differently.

I love it when the plane is treated with respect. They do not pull the levers sharply, but do everything carefully, lovingly. Switch the toggle switches, press the button (smiles. - TUT.BY). But maybe it's because I'm a woman.

No, caring doesn't take longer. You know, in aviation there is this: to do quickly means to do it continuously and deliberately. That is, if I quickly press something without looking, it will be much worse. And so, while I press, I think.

Pilots need a good memory, yes. You need to read a lot of technical literature. To my shame, there is no time to read fiction. I’m even embarrassed when one of my friends says that he read something interesting yesterday - and I read the navigation yesterday. But technical is closer to me. Sometimes textbooks, however, get bored ... You read something and think: well, how much can you write about it? Then you come across the described situation and suddenly remember both the text and the picture on the page. Then you come back to it again and already remember forever. Therefore, memory is memory, but we must try, first of all, to delve into everything and figure it out.

A matter of technology

— The plane I am currently flying is one of the most common and reliable. I am glad that the management of the Boeing is at the helm. Today there are planes where control is with the help of a sidestick (from the English side-stick, side control stick. - TUT.BY). It seems to me that the steering wheel is closer to me.

To the question of what I would fly. In general, I really love the An-124 Ruslan. I even called - I tried to get a job as a navigator in order to work on Ruslan. Because such a colossus! And the An-225 "Mriya" is generally super.

There are noticeable differences between the work of a pilot and a navigator. And the programs differed: in navigation, more attention is paid to air navigation, and in flying - to aerodynamics, piloting technique. But it's all very close.

Navigation work is more related to calculations: on the An-26, the navigator was responsible for maintaining documents on board, for radio communications. This experience now, in Belavia, was very useful to me. I work for aircraft where there are only two people in the cabin. The co-pilot and the commander communicate in turn. Thanks to my experience as a navigator, I no longer get lost on the air.

Before, however, I conducted radio communications in Russian. And since Belavia's flights are mostly international, everything has to be done in English.

Much different from my previous work. For example, we are currently flying in upper space. Smaller separation intervals, everyone is flying side by side. When I first flew to Europe, I was very surprised how close everything is to each other in the sky. Over Russia, in vast spaces, this is not so noticeable, but here you fly and see other planes nearby.

So far, I am flying with an instructor, and a reserve pilot, who is called a safety pilot (safety pilot. - TUT.BY), is also flying with us. He controls me, makes sure that I do all the procedures correctly. Gives advices.

The forests are mesmerizing from above. Especially over Russia - forests, forests, and then a bright little light of the town. It seems cozy to me. And in Europe, of course, a city on a city.

Now we have a flight to Hurghada - it's very beautiful from above, you can see the pyramids.

I look at Minsk from above a little. When we fly up, we are mainly preparing for landing. The city is visible, but we are very busy: different stages of preparation of instruments, descent. Everything is very tense.

Don't worry about the passengers, just do your job

— So far I have no experience of working in difficult weather conditions. Pah-pah-pah, I'm very lucky: difficult situations I've only seen it in the gym so far.

But the most important thing in the work of a pilot is to clearly understand your tasks. You know, I'm very lucky with teachers, instructors. One of them told me words that I remember very well: do not worry about people. You just have to know that you have a responsible job and that you need to fly from point A to point B. Even if the plane is empty. You must be responsible. You also need to remember yourself. The psychophysiology teacher explained to us: human resources are unlimited. The instinct of self-preservation works at full capacity when you worry first of all about your life. It’s the same on a flight: if you save your life, you save everyone else.

I'm not an extreme person in life, no. True, as a child I really wanted to jump with a parachute - I was not allowed. And this was the first thing I did as soon as I left for St. Petersburg from my parents. And you know, I don't want to.

And I jumped without preparation, without an instructor. Aviation people are still so humorous. I’m a naive girl of sixteen years old, and they joked: “Oh, the blood didn’t wash off from the last time”, “Oh, wait: now we’ll sew up the parachutes and let’s go” (laughs. - TUT.BY). And, of course, everything was very nervous. And the boy alone scared me on the plane. He sat opposite me, and in the hands of a piece of land with grass. I ask: "What is it?" He says: “But you must definitely take a piece of land with you.” I sit and think: but I don’t have it! To deceive me, of course, was time to spit.

When I jumped out, I did not understand what to do, how to control the parachute. I figured out how it works, and for half of my flight I tried to pilot it: I pulled myself up on a rope, trying to turn it away from the village I was flying to.

At that time I was simply drawn to the sky, but I did not know what a jump was. Then I realized that I need to prepare for everything, I need to learn everything.

About love. "We haven't seen each other for a week - and I no longer care where he scattered his socks"

- My husband is also a pilot, he works for Rossiya Airlines. We met when I was studying in Yekaterinburg. I was sent to work on the An-26, many knew that I was a navigator, that I could help with navigation if something was not clear to someone. Sergei called me to help with the materials for the test.

Today he works in St. Petersburg, and I in Minsk. Our house is in St. Petersburg, my parents also moved there to live. But Minsk is similar to St. Petersburg in terms of mood, everything is measured here.

Everything is fine, my husband and I are always in touch. Today, you can easily meet on the Internet. He comes to visit me very often, I go when I have time. In fact, it's even more interesting. We have not seen each other for a week - I no longer care where he scattered his socks there, where he walked yesterday with friends. I just want to see him. And him too. And that's great.

My husband flies a lot: both in Europe and in Russia - to Omsk, Tyumen, Samara. By the way, he is very surprised by our geography: “Where are you flying to? To Geneva? Wow, I've never been there. To Ashgabat? We just heard about it." He kindly envies me, jokes, but he, of course, is very happy for me.

In principle, I am not tied to any place, city. I am where I have things to do. And when I worked at Transaero, I had to leave for Moscow. She left everything and went here, because there are no borders. The sky is the same over Magadan and over Minsk. And now here is what I have been going for so many years.

“It’s not so exotic anymore - a woman at the helm”

My maiden name is Knizhnichenko. Now Eremenko. As a student, I dreamed: when I get married, I will finally have a “normal” surname, which will immediately show that I am a girl. But it turned out that everything remains the same (smiles. - TUT.BY).

There are funny situations. I go through a medical examination before the flight - and they mark me as a flight attendant. I say: "So I'm not a flight attendant." I answered: “How is it not? Only the flight attendant has a female surname on the list of crew members.

If I were offered to choose another job, not a pilot, then the only thing I would choose is a job as a mother. I would like my two children - a girl and a boy. My husband and I talked a lot about this. But, to be honest, I would be glad to take, in addition to my two children, also a child from an orphanage. And not quite small, but about eight or ten years old. So that this child can already compare and believe in a miracle. I believe that any person can be educated and helped to get on his feet - and he will appreciate it. I also believe that everyone needs a miracle.

Do I encounter miracles myself? Yes. For example, when I was born, my grandfather fell ill with a very serious cancer. And we consider it a great miracle that he is still alive. Even though he was born in 1928.

I will not dissuade my children if they really like the profession. He wants to be a pilot - let him be, he wants to be a journalist - let him be, if he likes it and everything works out. For some time my mother said: “Are you sure?”, “Do you need it?”, “Girls don’t do that.” But then, of course, my family was very supportive. The child must go his own way.

Of course girls do that. I know about two or three dozen girls who want to fly or fly. Yes, we are still a tiny percentage. But all the same, the point is that it is no longer so exotic - a woman at the helm.

There are three dozen women civil aviation pilots in Russia. Aeroflot pilot Olga Gracheva became the first woman in Russia to become an aircraft commander in 2009. Pilots appeared in Transaero only in 2012. Now Aeroflot has 13 pilotesses, three of them are aircraft commanders. Maria Uvarovskaya received this title in January 2014.

The Village asked the pilotess to talk about working days, the reaction of passengers to the female voice of the pilot and how the world is changing.

Maria Uvarovskaya

aircraft commander

About training

I never dreamed of becoming a pilot as a child. After school, I entered the architectural institute, and at the same time studied at the flying club. Today, most flying clubs are commercial, but in my youth you could study for free, it was called the Voluntary Society for Assistance to the Army, Air Force and Navy (DOSAAF). I flew for the first time at the age of 17 in a small aerobatic plane. Hobby after some time grew into a desire to become a professional pilot.

Fortunately for my parents, I managed to get a reliable education. At some point, I confronted them with a fact: I entered the Academy of Civil Aviation. To become a pilot, you need to fly a certain number of hours, you have to pay for classes on an airplane yourself. The work of an architect made it possible to study on a small six-seater Yak-18T. Having flown about 100 hours on it, at the age of 24 I entered the Academy of Civil Aviation.

The first time I came for an interview at Aeroflot, when I could only fly on a sports plane. Of course, they looked at me with condescension then, but they liked my sincere desire to work here. I was given a number of conditions, including flying a Yak-40 for a certain number of hours. I got a job in another Russian airline and worked there. After that, she came again and this time for good. I was taken as a co-pilot on the Tu-154.

The practice of state flying clubs is no more, and since training costs a lot of money (obtaining a private pilot's license will cost from 350 to 650 thousand rubles, depending on the type of aircraft chosen. - Approx. The Village), a layer of people from business has appeared among the pilots. Some of them even graduated from college at one time, but could not work in their specialty: in the early 90s there was a crisis, the number of flights was sharply reduced and there was no work for pilots, the staff was not expanded, the guys were not taken after schools. Then the old-timers retired, and there was no continuity of generations. Traffic volumes have increased, the number of airlines has increased, and there is a serious shortage. Those guys who dreamed of flying, but were forced to do business, returned to aviation.

They invested part of the money they earned, flew with instructors and became professionals. Among my colleagues there are quite rich people who could continue to do business, but they want to fly and they are ready to give up the life that they had before. (The working conditions of the pilot are indicated on the Aeroflot website in the PIC recruitment announcement. - Approx. The Village.)

When in winter time
me in my coat and mine flight the form is not visible, I am regularly accepted for the stewardess

Now programs have begun to appear when airlines pay for training. School graduates are considered valuable personnel: they are young, healthy and are good material for learning. Those who once flew something are considered more closely. Companies sometimes provide training loans to their employees: after flying a certain number of hours, becoming a pilot, they simply work them out. There are retrained flight engineers and navigators. There are precedents for retraining flight attendants.

About male colleagues

Male colleagues behave with dignity; on their part, I did not notice any cases of distrust or disrespect. There was never even ridicule in the face, although behind the eyes, I think they are joking about us. I had good aerobatic experience, colleagues in civil aviation did not know how to do what I could do: they never flew aerobatic aircraft. Apparently, this helped me gain credibility at first. I am glad that I work in men's team. I think I have a masculine mindset. I understand how to mentally set myself up to work with men. Sometimes it is even more difficult for me to negotiate with women than with men. Women have a slightly different world, and I have already adapted to the male environment.

As a rule, my co-pilot is a man. Of course, there were several cases when I saw that the co-pilot or flight attendant was uncomfortable. It is difficult for them because they do not understand a little what is happening. Previously, their commanders were always men, they knew what and how to say, but when they see a female commander, they begin to choose words and feel discomfort from the fact that the situation is unusual. This does not affect the work in any way, it's just sometimes more difficult to talk about an abstract topic with the co-pilot.

When I was introduced by the commander, I was sitting in the captain's seat, and my instructor was sitting in the co-pilot's seat. At the parking lot, a technician comes in, looks at us and says: “Why did you change places? Why are you sitting in the commander's seat? I answer that I am being introduced, that I am a future commander. "Come on!" the technician said. Gone. But somehow he was restless in his soul, he returned again, clarified: “Well, are you sure you are a pilot?” And with a sigh, he left.

By the way, the ground rendezvous system speaks with a female voice. Previously, there were only men in the cabin, and if a woman suddenly turns to you, then something is wrong.

About the reaction of others

Curiosities associated with the fact that the pilot of the aircraft is a woman periodically occur. Often such moments arise when we arrive at Russian airports. Everyone abroad is used to it. In AirFrance and Alitalia, 20% of the pilots are women, and for Russian ground personnel this is a completely unusual story. When in winter I am in a coat and my flight uniform is not visible, I am regularly mistaken for a flight attendant.

We don't see passengers when we greet them over the radio, but flight attendants say that many are surprised when they hear my voice. Some passengers are worried, but in all my work, no one has ever been filmed from a flight. It happens that after boarding, passengers want to look at the commander, get to know each other, take pictures, express their admiration, but they rarely succeed: our cabin is closed, and while the crew says goodbye to the passengers, we are doing our procedures in it.

When I say who I work for in an unfamiliar company, there is always an additional topic for conversation. A person wants to get to know me better, thinks: “Probably, there is something unusual in you, since you have chosen such a job.” Sometimes I want to say directly: "I a common person, an ordinary girl who just does what she likes."

About other women in aviation

I joined Aeroflot in 2007 and became the third female pilot in the company. Now 13 girls work for us, every year one or two pilotesses join us. I used to think that women compete in this area, but when I met the first woman commander in Aeroflot, Olga Ivanovna Gracheva, my gloomy ideas were dispelled. She worked for the Boeing 767, which is a long-haul aircraft, and was always ready to help everyone in everything.

In general, the number of female pilots in Russia is increasing, but the stereotype of our thinking lags behind technical progress. We are at the crossroads of Europe and Asia, and many processes are slowed down: the role of women is not entirely defined in our country. And women are different.

All my female colleagues are completely different, not similar to each other, each behaves differently in the cockpit, each has its own approach to work.

Previously, many flight attendants approached me with the question of where to learn and what to do to take my place in the cockpit. These were not always people who want to fly: someone wants a bigger salary, someone thinks that we are sitting and doing nothing special. As a rule, random people are eliminated at the training stage.

Men are given uniforms according to their size the only thing is that they can take in.
With women it's Complicated

In our company, people are evaluated depending on their professionalism, not gender. Our instructors managed to get rid of stereotypes, not only about women. For example, we now have a lot of young commanders, although it seems that preference in our field should be given to more mature and experienced ones. However, despite their young age, the pilots are well trained professionally, they have an excellent memory and good knowledge.

About form

Men are given a uniform according to their size, the only thing is that they can take in a little. It's difficult with women. When I became the third pilot, they sewed a uniform for me, because I have a very small size. But the woman who came to work after me was sent to the warehouse to choose some of the men's clothing. Then the “Victoria Andreyanova Fashion House” worked with us, sewed uniforms according to individual measurements. At the same time, there were no differences between the male and female uniforms, we ourselves asked to sew a tunic a little on the figure, add a belt to the coat, and the fashion designers went to meet us.

Now there are more women, and we are treated more attentively. Tailoring of the female form is trying to put on stream. Currently under development new form, and literally last week all the women were called and asked how it would be convenient for us to work. Probably, our uniform will even differ from the male one in some way, including the headdress.

About the work of the commander and the working mode

In general, the work of the commander and co-pilot is the same: first, one communicates, and the other at this moment pilots or controls the operation of the autopilot. Then we change. However, the commander makes the final decision in important matters.

On my first flight as an aircraft commander, there was a little trepidation before the engines were pushed to maximum on the runway. At that moment, the realization came that I would now make all decisions on my own. After that, everything went on as usual, there was simply no time for excitement. Of course, there is responsibility, and it presses, but it never frightened me.

I'm flying an Airbus A320, it's a medium haul aircraft not designed for transcontinental flights. Our geography - Europe and Russia to Irkutsk. Long-haul aircraft fly to Vladivostok. If I fly away in the morning, then I fly for two hours, for example, to Prague. There's an hour parking - and back. If we fly away at eight o'clock in the evening, then we stand at the airport for several hours, and in the morning we arrive back. We can’t see anything if we don’t have a long parking lot with access to the city. The differences in flight are small: our country is wide, so the distances are longer and the airspace is not as busy as in Europe. There is a saturated radio exchange in the European space.

In the cockpit, the PIC and the co-pilot communicate in English, we speak Russian only on abstract topics. At the time when we were retraining from Soviet technology, there was a condition - to learn English. The level must be decent - this is technical language: all documentation on English language and all technical documents, the airbus itself is also foreign.

We have no restrictions on the number of flights per month. There is a flight norm and a norm of working hours. Flight rate- 80 hours per month, extended rate - 90 hours. Accordingly, 800 and 900 hours per year. Many pilots agree to an extended allowance because it increases the salary.

Changing a plane every five years is good practice. Five years later, the pilot begins to get bored, he has been in all conditions, gained tremendous experience. Someone after that goes to instructors, someone takes leadership positions, someone changes the type of aircraft. Everyone needs movement and professional growth. I have the opportunity to retrain for a long-haul aircraft, but I don’t really want to. I like to leave in the morning and arrive in the evening. My flights, of course, also have their drawbacks: a lot of night flights. They eat up time because you sleep all day after the flight. There is very little time left for family and communication with a six-year-old daughter.

About dangers, superstitions and catastrophes

I was lucky, I never had aircraft failures in the air. There were failures on the ground and as a result of flight delays. In the air, the weather used to deteriorate, we had to go to the emergency lane. These are non-standard situations, they require attention, but they are standard. A combination of factors such as gusty side winds, icing on the runway, and runway length complicate the situation. When landing on a short snow-covered strip, you understand that you have to land exactly at the signs, at the touchdown point - in clear weather from a four-kilometer landing strip you can afford to fly over this point. All these situations are worked out on simulators that completely imitate all options. Once a year on these simulators we confirm our qualifications - if you do not cope with this exam, you will not be allowed to work.

After every plane crash in the world, there is a reaction in every Russian company. Information documents created on the basis of the analysis of the disaster are always published, we get acquainted with them. Special work is carried out - additional training or classes. If a situation has ever arisen before, we must be ready to prevent it when it arises again. We are trying to make the most of the mistakes. Even minor incidents are studied.

We fly every day and no longer believe in signs, for example, not to take pictures before the flight and so on. People at work are becoming more practical and perhaps a little more cynical. Passengers fly once a month, and they think it's a risk. When you fly every day, you are not afraid of anything. It's just work.

Photos: Ivan Anisimov

Are there female pilots in Russia? Certainly! At first glance, this profession seems quite romantic, but it is not. It is very difficult for women in this area for many reasons. But how? Let's figure it out.

Our service is both dangerous and difficult

They can easily conquer the sky, having received the education of a flight attendant. What if you want more? Height, sky, beautiful shape - these are the first associations that come to the mind of girls when they hear the word "pilot". But all the pitfalls associated with this profession are not always taken into account. A professional female pilot in Russia needs to undergo special training, to be fluent in foreign language, to be a responsible and attentive person, because human lives are at stake.

Why aviation?

There are more and more female pilots in Russia every year. This profession is becoming increasingly popular - the fair sex is eager to realize their ambitions just like men. It often happens that the little daughter of a pilot, looking at her dad, dreams of following in his footsteps. The growing popularity of aviation in our country is obvious.

How can a woman become a pilot?

It no longer surprises anyone that a woman is an aircraft pilot in Russia. IN Lately in our country, an acute shortage of personnel in the transport and military aviation. In this regard, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said that it is necessary to increase the number of places in educational institutions for future female pilots in Russia. Teachers of aviation clubs and flight schools say that women are not very suitable for military aviation because of the high workload. But for transport aviation - quite.

Professional training for pilots

First you need to go through a special medical commission - after all, the pilot must have excellent health. Then you need to choose an educational institution. Now in Russia there are a huge number of aviation clubs and training centers for female pilots, which provide professional training for aviation personnel. After passing the theory, which according to the standard is given 220 hours, you can begin to practice. A flight book is issued for a newly minted pilot, which contains flight permits, total flight time, testing of the theory and piloting technique. start flying better in autumn or in winter - the cabin will not be so hot, and the cold is not felt due to an excess of adrenaline. A solo flight is not allowed immediately - only after 9 hours with an instructor. And only after that, beginners are released into free flight without an instructor. On average, the practical course lasts about 50 hours.

Unfeminine work

It is believed that aviation is an exclusively male field. It is difficult for a woman here for several reasons. First, it is definitely heavy physical exercise designed more for the male body. Secondly, in order to work successfully in aviation, a woman must think like a man, which is not possible for everyone. And thirdly, you should not write off the work in the men's team. On the one hand - help and support, and on the other - condescension and, at times, arrogance. A female pilot in Russia must have iron restraint and a strong character.

Pilotesses and war

Marina Mikhailovna Raskova became an outstanding wartime pilot, who in 1941 took the initiative to create a women's aviation regiment. Even before the war, along with men, hundreds of women were educated in flight schools, so there were as many as 3 regiments who wanted to. Colonel G. Rozantsev led the recruitment of pilots. After some time, the 586th, 587th and 588th women's aviation regiments were formed. Brave women guarded the area of ​​​​Stalingrad - the most important strategic facility military actions. Women's aviation regiments participated in the liberation of the Crimea, North Caucasus, Poland. Sometimes the regiment flew out on a mission without additional equipment and parachutes. Instead, the aircraft were equipped with more big amount ammunition.

Nobody is forgotten and nothing is forgotten

Aviation regiments the Germans called our female pilots "Night Witches". Brave women terrified German soldiers, sent against them the best representatives aviation of the German army.

Among the female pilots in Russia, it is worth highlighting the legendary pilot Polina Osipenko, who became famous for her unusual story. The girl worked in the dining room of the flight school, where K. E. Voroshilov once arrived. Plucking up courage, Polina asked to enroll her in an educational institution, which, to everyone's surprise, he did. Polina Osipenko set several world aviation records, her life was tragically cut short during a flight in 1939. Many pilots of women's regiments tragically died defending their Motherland. Streets in some cities are named after such great pilotesses as P. Osipenko and E. Bershanskaya.

The first women in aviation

The first woman in the world to conquer the sky is traditionally considered Raymond de Laroche (aka Eliza Deroche), who in 1909 for the first time rose to a height of 6 meters and flew about 300 meters. This act became the starting point for women in aviation. Eliza became the first pilot in the world, set several world records. Before the advent of aviation in the life of this woman, she was an actress. Eliza died in a plane crash. The pilot was a man, and Eliza was in the passenger seat.

The first woman to officially receive a pilot's license was Beryl Markham. This is the first girl to fly on the African continent with rescue missions. In 1936, Markham was the first woman to fly solo east-west transatlantic flights from England. He is the author of memoirs and various manuals on aviation. Among other merits of Beryl, it can be noted that she was the first woman who had a license to teach horseback riding in Kenya, which at the time of the restriction of the female half of humanity in rights was very significant achievement. Beryl Markham died at the age of 83 in Nairobi.

The first female pilots in Russia

Officially, Domnikia Illarionovna Kuznetsova-Novoleinik is considered the first pilotess in Russia, who, having only theoretical knowledge about the structure of the aircraft, lifted it, but, unfortunately, could not hold it and collapsed to the ground. By the way, Domnikia's husband was aviator Pavel Kuznetsov, who later became a flight instructor.

The first in Russia by the name of Zvereva, Lidia Vissarionovna, was the first officially recognized pilot in our country. In the flight school, she found not only her vocation, but also her husband, aviator Vladimir Slyusarenko. By the way, Lydia Zvereva was the first woman to graduate from a specialized aviation educational institution.

Everyday life of modern pilotesses

How many female civil aviation pilots are there in Russia? Today this question can be answered precisely - clearly more than in the USSR. In the Land of the Soviets, women aviators were not very fond of. In the whole state there were only 4 places for training women in this profession. At present, the list of female civil aviation pilots in Russia is much more extensive than, say, 30-40 years ago. Often, looking at the photos of Russian female pilots, it seems that these women do not have a life, but a romantic dream. Behind the scenes are separation from family and friends, lack of sleep and constant stress. And even despite these important factors, the list of female pilots in Russia is constantly updated, all new beauties strive to conquer the sky.

Beauty that conquered even the sky

Russian in peacetime and wartime has always been at a high level. As for civil aviation, it is in no way inferior to military aviation; the profession of a pilot has at all times been shrouded in the spirit of romanticism and prestige. And how many female pilots of civil aviation in Russia! It can be seen that exceptionally strong and beautiful representatives of the weaker sex work here. What is the secret of their beauty? This is definitely one that appears only when a person is busy with his favorite thing. When you are close to a dream, the world plays with new colors. Below are videos and photos of Russian female pilots who amaze not only with their determination and fortitude, but also with their beauty.

Maria Fedorova is the youngest female pilot in Russia

At the age of 23, many of the fair sex do not know how to drive, let alone an airplane, even a car! How many female pilots in Russia at such a young age sat at the helm of an aircraft? Looking at this fragile girl, you will never think that she can land a multi-ton liner with the usual movement of her hand. Maria Fedorova is the youngest pilot of Aeroflot.

When asked about the reason for choosing a profession, Maria modestly replies that her father always dreamed of becoming a pilot, but she did not have such a dream. We can say that the dream of the father was embodied in his daughter. In order to get closer to her goal, Mary had to go through a difficult path.

After graduating aviation school, Masha flew for several months as a trainee, trained on simulators, studied theory. It is interesting that Maria does not prefer a Boeing for a flight, like her colleagues, but a Russian Superjet. When asked about the reason for choosing a Russian manufacturer, Maria replies that it is much more convenient for her to fly on a domestic aircraft, especially since its quality is excellent.

Looking at the photos of female civil aviation pilots in Russia, we often see adult women as well. Maria refutes the prejudice that age affects the professionalism of the pilot. According to her, even greater demands were placed on her than on the rest (again, due to age). But she managed to go through all the stages of training and testing, at the moment she is a full-fledged co-pilot. Despite the busy schedule, Maria, according to her, has time for her personal life. However, sometimes, according to her, the schedule is too busy.

Aeroflot pilotess Maria Uvarovskaya about her work

The list of female pilots in Russia has about 30 people. In 2009, Olga Gracheva received the proud title of aircraft commander. After 3 years, such a thing as "pilotess" appeared. Maria Uvarovskaya received this proud title in 2014.

Initially, young Maria wanted to be an architect. The understanding that she wants to connect her life with aviation came by chance, during free aviation training at DOSAAF. Then the hobby grew into a goal - to become a professional pilot. The path to the dream was thorny - I had to earn hours of flight on my own (and this is very expensive), practice on a small six-seater plane, while simultaneously working as an architect.

After graduating from an educational institution, the girl was not immediately taken to Aeroflot, they offered to practice at another airline, which she did. After all the efforts made, Maria Uvarovskaya nevertheless fulfilled her dream and was accepted into the ranks of the Aeroflot pilots. According to her, it was not difficult for her to change the company, because the work of a pilot involves retraining for another equipment every 3 years, therefore, changing places is not the most difficult thing in this work.

As always, in cases where a pilotess is flying an aircraft, passengers are very surprised when they hear a greeting from a female pilot. But contempt or panic fear, according to Maria, she never noticed. As for working in a male team, she quickly got used to such an environment. Uvarovskaya claims that when you work at a man's job, then over time you begin to think like a man.

Not once did Maria notice any contempt, or a condescending attitude, or rudeness in her address. But there is, of course, the assumption that the male part of the Aeroflot team is discussing pilotesses (in the good sense of the word).

Women at all times have made an invaluable contribution to the history of Russian aviation. In wartime and peacetime, the fair sex controlled the helm of an aircraft at a high level, in no way inferior to male aviators. In the twentieth century, society actively got rid of gender prejudices that dictated to a woman what to do and how to live. Now, thanks to this, women are full members of society, making their full contribution to the development of the world economy. And in our time, the fair sex can be a doctor, play football, drive a car and even fly an airplane. And this will not cause ridicule and misunderstanding, because a woman who has chosen such a profession is an example of a mature, strong personality that deserves respect and admiration.

Oatmeal, good coffee and a call to my son - "Mom is going to fly, don't worry." Then - a plane to another country, a short walk between flights, a flight back to Russia. A company car, a house, another call to my son - don't worry, my mother has arrived. To kid Olga Kirsanova- only five years old, now he lives with his grandmother in Minvody. She sees her mother once a month: a civilian pilot has little free time, but Olga devotes everything she has to her son.

Music, kayak, plane

Olga Kirsanova is a civil aviation pilot, drives an aircraft weighing more than a hundred tons and with a capacity of 180 passengers. She is responsible for all these lives. She loves her job - she says there is no other way, for the sake of such a profession she had to go through fire, water and offices of officials. In the Soviet Union, women pilots were not favored.

Photo by Ludmila Alekseeva

“In my family, all the men were aviators, all the women were teachers. Therefore, by my first education I am a philologist, but I completed my last years of studies, having already entered the flight school, - says Olga Kirsanova. - I ended up in the famous Volchanskoye, it was actually the only place where women were accepted. For us, there are only four places in the entire Soviet Union!

Olga got a place - she had to reach the very "highest offices", even making her way into the building of the Ministry of Defense. She was sure that she should study to be a pilot, because there is everything you need: a strong character, experience in flying in an aero club, and a sports category. Olga is a master of sports in kayaking, at the age of 15 she got into the youth national team of the country. was going to big sport, but did not pass in height - 10 centimeters were missing. The father even made the girl an appointment with Elizarov - all of a sudden it turns out to be "pulled out." But they dissuaded me: with age, such experiments with the body could backfire with big problems.

Photo by Ludmila Alekseeva

In the end, they took Olga to the school: service and life in the barracks began. Definitely - in tarpaulin boots. “They were extremely uncomfortable. I thought what a deja vu: once I, such a refined thin girl, came after a music school to the rowing section. I washed my hands to the blood, now these are the same corns on my feet. Olga studied in Ukraine, where she moved from warm Tashkent, so the local winters shocked her. Men were given long overcoats and hats with earflaps, women - a model uniform, a short coat to the knees and an astrakhan cap. Nice, but not warm at all. However, according to the charter, nothing can be done. But the dream of heaven began to come true.

Photo by Ludmila Alekseeva

Become a beloved son

“You see, my parents were expecting their first-born son, but I turned out,” Olga jokes. - Then they learned: I had two more brothers, but I always wanted to become my dad's most beloved son - because I owe all my success to him. He inspired me, he left for us large aviation to a small flying club - to give your children a taste of the sky.

Photo by Ludmila Alekseeva

Dad supported Olga in everything: he taught her to “see the ground” - the pilot’s ability to accurately determine the height “by eye” takes a long time to train. You need to choose the right point where to look - only then you can calculate the distance to the ground. Dad put Olga on the wing of the plane, took an ordinary tire and showed where the eyes should be directed correctly when landing. He explained to his daughter how to skydive, supported before flights.

“Now I drive a large winged machine, and before, when I flew on small ones, I had to jump with a parachute twice a year,” says Olga. - It was very scary - not because I was afraid to hurt myself and die, but because if I break my arm or leg, I can put an end to my career as a pilot. But I thought my grandfather was jumping, my dad was jumping, I can’t shame our family. So, I will definitely succeed.”

Photo by Ludmila Alekseeva

Olga says that the pilot's mind resists a parachute jump - why jump out of a properly flying plane? The first pancake was, as expected, lumpy. The jump ended with a landing right in the middle of a herd of cows. “I was wearing a red suit, and I heard that it infuriates the bulls, how I rushed from there! And literally a couple of days later I watched a TV program: they said that they do not react to color, but to movement.

After graduation, Olga was assigned to the aviation center, but the collapse of the USSR happened, staff reductions - there was not enough space even for experienced pilots. Olga returned to her native Tashkent. After searching, she managed to break into the ranks of air ambulance pilots - prestigiously, responsibly. But there were few sorties - mostly on duty. Olga missed the sky and wanted to work. She began to receive permits to work with "chemistry" - special-purpose cargo. The profession is harmful, but you can fly more often. “The leadership’s hair stood on end, a woman, for chemistry, but never! Olga recalls. “I said I would do anything for flying.” I was offered: let's better retrain you on the Yak-40. Agreed. I flew on it for 11 years.

Photo by Ludmila Alekseeva

Then there was training on the TU-154 and foreign Airbus. In those years, Olga had already moved to Moscow - according to happy accident, helped by a former colleague. “I flew to Domodedovo, I had two days in the capital to see something, to buy delicious home. Suddenly, a familiar commander called: you have 15 minutes, iron your shirt, and come to the meeting of the qualification commission. Olga had time and got a job with a large civil carrier.

Shirts are a sore subject for any pilot. You need to come to work “like on a holiday”, in a sparkling clean and ironed, and after a whole day of flying, there was simply no strength left for this. “I have always envied men: they arrive, and their wife cooked dinner for them, and ironed their shirts. Well, at least now we have a laundry service - it saves so much of my time!

Photo by Ludmila Alekseeva

While working, the pilot had to hide her pregnancy - being in her seventh month, she “perfectly well” flew off the state exam on the brand new Airbus A320. But soon it was impossible to hide the stomach.

“I came to the authorities, I say: can I quickly give birth and return, and they screamed so much ...” says Olga. “I thought I was going into premature labor. They told me that I was a liar, that I had to choose, a child or planes. And they fired me. I was a single mother, with a child in her arms, with retired parents whom I have to support. It was a disaster - it cost me 15 kilograms of weight and a sea of ​​\u200b\u200btears.

Three countries per day

Now Olga is an employee of Aeroflot, she says about her work that “the stars have formed”: she began her career in civil aviation in this company: in the Tashkent branch, more than twenty years ago. It flies all over the world - to London, Dubai, Madrid. There is not much time to see the world, but it is there - a light outfit is always waiting in a purse. There is a special one for Arab states- very private. In one working day, Olga can change three countries. Flights are almost daily.

Photo by Ludmila Alekseeva

Every six months there are special drills to practice emergency procedures. The simulator imitates everything to the smallest detail - the pilot trains in 3D models of real airfields. Another training is in the pool, they work out the evacuation in case of landing on the water. Experienced pilots have known and been able to do everything for a long time, but practice must be regular in order to bring everything to pure automatism.

Photo from personal archive

The flight is something that every pilot loves with all his heart, although not everyone admits it, Olga believes. The work is very hard - every second information enters the cockpit, while the pilot simultaneously monitors five monitors - in such a stream, you need to manage to process everything you receive and make decisions quickly. The standard scheme - one pilot pilots the aircraft, the other communicates, on the way back - change. But at the same time, they must control each other - no one is immune from mistakes.

“From childhood, my dad taught me not to soar in the clouds, not to think about my own, to immerse myself in work with my head,” says Olga. Because I'm responsible for hundreds of lives. More recently, a person on board was on the verge of life and death. By the time our flight arrived, the airspace over Moscow was very busy, but the services worked smoothly, saving another life. Fortunately, everything worked out, but the experiences are very difficult.

Photo by Ludmila Alekseeva

Alcohol on board is a sore point for most airlines. “Often a person registered, and went to a cafe or duty free to drink, he is terribly late, but he is sure that they will wait for him. It used to be so, but now we have canceled these concessions. I don’t welcome alcohol at all, it’s only trouble in the air!”

So to clap

Female pilots are perceived differently by male colleagues, more often quite adequately, but there are also conflicts. “I noticed a long time ago that when a person in a family has a daughter, communication will be better,” says Olga. Passengers are usually pleased with an unusual pilot - sometimes after the flight they come up for autographs. Or just talk, get to know each other, make a compliment.

Photo by Ludmila Alekseeva

Pilots, in turn, are very fond of when their work is appreciated. “I always try, if possible, to land the plane very gently - so that they definitely clap for me, it's so nice! Passengers also like to arrive a little earlier than the schedule, so we try to please them, even sacrificing our flight hours,” says Olga.

Olga, like all pilots, is a little superstitious: she does not like black cats and the number 13. 2013 began hard for her - her father died, the most native person. “He had a heart attack, I was there, but at my workplace I was flying in the sky right above the house,” Olga recalls. Still can't speak without tears. Carefully selects photos for publication: "be sure to put dad."

Photo by Ludmila Alekseeva

“We didn’t have time to finish building the house, but I already planted a tree, and gave birth to a son, everything to make dad proud of me,” says Olga. - A son without a grandfather is also terribly worried. I come to him every month, I take two days off to be a good mother - to talk, look after him, cut his nails - he does not give his grandmother. I'm leaving, I'm crying, my son is also crying. He gave me a flashlight - he worries about me so that I don’t walk in the dark. Waiting for every flight. It's hard, but that's my life, my job."

Photo by Ludmila Alekseeva

In the intervals between trips to his son - weekdays civilian pilot. The whole day in the sky, home - to sleep - and again in flight. When asked if Olga wants her son to become a pilot, she does not have a definite answer. “The sky became harsh, heavy. Grow up - we'll see. I want him to make his own choice. Just look what a cool man I have!” Olga opens photos of her son on her phone. She always has them at hand - it's a little easier to survive parting.

The list of typically male professions is very long. For example, you will not find a woman - a miner, a fireman, a machinist ... But there are pilots! And not only in America (in the homeland of militant feminism), but also here. Who are these beauties and was their fate thorny?

"Nuuu, pilot ..." - you say. - “There, we even had Tereshkova, the first woman cosmonaut” ...

Yes, in our country no one will forbid a young girl to learn and get a job at Aeroflot. Another thing - will she want to do it? In addition to the skills to control a winged machine, the pilot is required to be well versed in the technical part, in the "nuts", in a word. Well, in addition, the pilot must always be in good physical shape (not to mention the ability to cope with stress and a high level of internal discipline). It's easier to go to the teacher, well, or to the manager!

Where are pilots trained? In Ulyanovsk or St. Petersburg, in flight universities. And also in schools located in smaller cities (Sasovo, Omsk, Kaluga, Buguruslan, Krasny Kut).

What do you need to submit upon admission?

• Data on overall school performance.
• Tests that confirm the excellent state of health.
• Pass psychological tests.

During study in classes reigns almost army discipline. Absenteeism is not tolerated here and no one will give marks for “eyes” or a short skirt.

So how many pilots do we have? For 2016, 450 women received a flight license. Of these, 30 women successfully pilot passenger aircraft. More than half, namely 20, are in Aeroflot (five of these ladies became first pilots, that is, crew commanders).

Why so few? The fact is that having received a certificate, the pilot must pilot only cargo aircraft for some time, improving his skills. Only after that he can be trusted with passengers (and then after retraining at the flight base - which, by the way, is also not cheap).

And do not think that the steering wheel is issued once and for all. Women (like men) constantly improve their skills, train on simulators and pass a medical commission. This moment, in particular, is shown in the Soviet film "Crew".

How about over the ocean? There are many more pilots in the country of victorious feminism. 27 thousand ladies received the license. About 1000 girls pilot civil aircraft.

When did women first take the helm?

The war acted as the engine of progress (as is the case with the development of many other male specialties). During the First World War, the number of men fell sharply, and the authorities of many countries allowed women to sit in the cockpit of winged vehicles, if only there was someone to fight.

Thus, the Frenchwoman Elisa De Laroche became the first female pilot (you can see her in this retro photo). She first took to the skies over a hundred years ago - in 1910.

There were also such revolutionaries in the Russian Empire - the most famous example is Princess Shakhovskaya (1915). By the end of the war, dozens of military pilots could be counted in many countries. In World War II, this figure increased even more (remember at least the “winged witches” that German soldiers were so afraid of).

As for civil aviation, even after the Second World War, it was dominated exclusively by representatives of the strong half of humanity. And only in the 21st century this "fashion" has changed.

Of course, in fairness, we note: in the 70s, courses for future pilots consisting of only girls were recruited twice in the USSR (90 graduates graduated from them). But then this practice died out on its own.

Names of modern "heavenly ballerinas"

As they say in our country, "heroes need to be known by sight." Such heroines - for sure! Moreover, their faces are beautiful, their characters are strong, their fate is unusual and more than interesting. Of course, we cannot tell about each of the thirty. But we can shed some light on the biography of women who communicate with the press more often than others.

Maria Uvarovskaya

Since 2014, he has been the commander of the Airbus A320 of Aeroflot.

She claims that in Russia it is not a problem to learn to be a pilotess. However, getting a job and piloting an airplane is still difficult. Firstly, many passengers are more than wary of pilots in a skirt, and secondly, it is not easy to work with every male colleague (and the “complete set” of crews changes all the time, as the management believes: if the pilots are not familiar, they they will not trust each other, which means they will more carefully check the indicators of devices, controlling each other).

It is also difficult with relatives who do not always let their daughters or wives go to heaven. For example, the first thing Maria does after every landing is to call her mother. Although she let her daughter go to conquer the skies, she is terribly worried about her during each flight.

Pilotess A-320.

This is not just the owner of a flight license, but the continuer of the family business (all the men in Olga's family were aviators).

For this woman, the biggest problem in her work turned out to be going on maternity leave. She had to hide her interesting position to the last, retraining for another model of the aircraft already with a decent tummy. Before giving birth, the authorities, having learned about the upcoming decree of the woman, fired her with shouts. Fortunately, everything ended well - when the baby grew up, Olga was accepted into Aeroflot.

Children are the hardest part of the job of a female pilot. It’s good when there is someone to look after them (for example, Olga’s son lives with her mother, her grandmother).

The youngest pilot in our country (and throughout the world too), who received the helm of a passenger ship at only 23 years old. He has been piloting Superjet since the end of 2016.

And then there is Olga Gracheva (since 2009 - Boeing 767 commander), Tatyana Rymanova (Boeing 737 commander), Elena Novichkova (Airbus A320 FAC), Daria Sinichkina (piloting the Sukhoi Superjet-100 since 2015), Larina Evmurzaeva (the first pilot among Chechen women) and many others.

Well, this video will tell about another living legend, with whom we were lucky to be born. Svetlana Kapanina was named the seven-time absolute champion in aerobatics (and this title was given to her not by other "heavenly swallows", but by harsh male pilots). Yes, this woman is probably the only one in the sports federation ... And at the same time the best! As her fans say, "ace in a skirt." So, "Wings of Parma", performance for 2017. It's really beautiful!