Wing Commander Vyomika Singh

Wing Commander Vyomika Singh is a helicopter pilot in the Indian Air Force. She, along with Colonel Sophia Qureshi was a part of the media briefing on Operation Sindoor. Operation Sindoor was carried out on the early morning of May 7, 2025. It was a well planned and targeted strike in response to the recent attack in Pahalgam. Wing Commander Vyomika Singh's flight into the skies started with a childhood ambition. Influenced by her name-Vyomika, which translates to "the one who lives in the sky"-she wanted to be a pilot from as young as class six. She enrolled with the National Cadet Corps (NCC) to pursue her interest and thereafter completed an engineering degree, becoming the first in her family to become part of the armed forces. Her engineering academic background was a good basis for her aviation career. Commissioned as a helicopter pilot in the Indian Air Force, Vyomika Singh was granted a permanent commission in the flying branch on December 18, 2019. During her career, she has accumulated over 2,500 hours of flying time, flying Chetak and Cheetah helicopters in some of India's toughest terrains, such as high-altitude flights in Jammu & Kashmir and the Northeast. She has commanded several rescue and relief operations, including a dangerous mission in Arunachal Pradesh in November 2020, where flying and leadership skills under difficult weather conditions were paramount in saving lives. In 2021, she was part of a tri-services all-female mountaineering expedition to Mt. Manirang (21,650 feet), which was an achievement acknowledged by the highest defence brass. Wing Commander Singh's professionalism and gallantry have earned her commendations from the Chief of Air Staff and the Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief of an operational command. Her work in high-altitude rescue operations and endurance expeditions really speaks volumes about her status as a role model for women officers who aim to join the defence forces. Wing Commander Vyomika Singh, on May 7, 2025, was at the centre of India's reaction to the Pahalgam terror attack, co-anchoring the official media briefing on 'Operation Sindoor'-a strike targeting nine terrorist bases in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. The operation, undertaken during the pre-dawn hours of May 7, was a targeted, non-escalatory response to the murder of 26 Indian civilians, meant to destroy terrorist infrastructure without initiating larger conflict. Her involvement in the shared press conference, with Colonel Sophia Qureshi, was a first for women in the armed forces, emphasizing their involvement in both operational and public messaging roles.