24th January 2013

Hundred years of civil aviation

On 18 February, 1911 the first commercial civil aviation flight took place in India between Allahabad and Naini, a distance of 6 miles when Henri Piquet carried 6500 mails on a Humber biplane. This is considered to be the world's first airmail service and the beginning of civil aviation in India. However the first actual airline started on 15 October 1932, when J.R.D. Tata flew a single-engined De Havilland Puss Moth carrying air mail (postal mail of Imperial Airways) from Karachi's Drigh Road Aerodrome to Bombay's Juhu Airstrip.

Since then the aviation industry has seen a lot of changes. I was among the fortunate few who had the opportunity to be on a plane, courtsey my dad's job with Indian Airlines. Now of course it is no big deal but back in those days, it earned you bragging rights among friends.