She Decided to Fly in Honour of Her Late Husband, an IAF Pilot

Vinaya Patil worked as a reporter for a Mumbai-based newspaper while she prepared to appear for SSB.

Vinaya Patil with her late husband Shashikant Damgude. (Photo Courtesy: DNA)

Vinaya Patil, among many others, cracked the Selection Board Board (SSB) examination to gain entry into the Indian Air Force (IAF). However, the inspiration for the former journalist to become a pilot is touching – her late husband Flight Lieutenant Shashikant Damgude.

Damgude was serving as a pilot in the IAF when he was killed in a road accident in 2015, reports DNA. After the recently declared results, the 26-year-old widow will train at the Air Force Academy in Hyderabad for 11 months.

Vinaya Patil juggled her job at the newspaper with the preparation for the entrance exam. (Photo Courtesy: Facebook Page of Vinaya Patil)

Patil was working at the web desk of DNA, a Mumbai-based daily newspaper, when he husband was killed, a few days into their marriage. 

Shashikant loved challenges and he always encouraged me to challenge myself, and that is what I am doing by joining the IAF. 

Vinaya Patil

Patil’s determination and its result has made her family proud. A graduate of Journalism and Sociology, her father and her mother-in-law are assured of her success during her term in the Air Force.