Interview With Lakshmi Tyagi

Report: Lakshmi Tyagi

The interview with Lakshmi Tyagi was an enlightening experience for me. A senior aircraft maintenance engineer at GoAir, she aimed for the sky (literally) at a time when the field of aircraft engineering for girls was a far-fetched dream. Born and brought up in Meerut, she dared to dream big and apply for the entrance exam at Aircraft Maintenance Engineering CET. She cleared it, and has been working for 18 years now in the field.

Inspired greatly by serials like Aarohan and SeaHawks, she held a fascination towards jets and defense forces since her school days. However, her sight weakened when she was young, making her incompatible in the line of armed forces. But she did not let that stop her, and worked extremely hard to pass the common national exam, pursuing her goal to work with jets and aircrafts. 

She talked about the numerous qualifications and hard work required to pursue a career in the field of aircrafts, including passing government exams held by the Director General of Civil Aviation. After a license number is assigned, a typical candidate must choose to specialize in an aircraft. She believes it is a large responsibility to sign an aircraft, since the body would fly with at least 180 passengers and the crew. 

Proud of her experience and skillset, she accomplished an expertise in Boeing 737 and ATR. However, the way of success is the continuous pursuit of knowledge. For this knowledge, she then learnt about a new aircraft: Airbus 320, and thinks that there is still a long way to go. 

But, any achievement is incomplete without the support of a family. Despite the limited attraction toward the field, her family never questioned her and were by her side throughout her endeavors. The most alluring field at the time was B.Tech but she refused to give up on her aspiration. Determined to achieve her aim, she went the extra mile to work successfully in the male dominated field. Today, she sees the gap between men and women decrease, she watches girls work in night shift patterns without any fear and marvels at the changes that have taken place in the industry. She watches the girls make choices for themselves fearlessly and reminisces about her own choice and life. 

No matter how many people support you, when the going gets tough, it is you who has to move on. Working in a male centric field can get intimidating for many girls, even today. However, Ms. Lakshmi thinks that this feeling should be countered with a positive attitude. “I was just glad, that is all I felt.” she says. “I have always felt that I love to do this and I will do this.”

Ms. Lakshmi feels very strongly for optimism. Sometimes, when things spiral out of hand, second thoughts are normal. Hardships and obstacles often make a person question their ability. But never say no, chase your dream and you will achieve them.