This new Air India service represents the only nonstop flights between the United States and Bengaluru

In a landmark journey, an all-women cockpit crew led by Captain Zoya Agarwal of national carrier Air India will fly from San Francisco to Bengaluru on a 16,000 kilometer-long route that goes over the North Pole. The flight will reach Bengaluru on Monday.

“Air India’s woman power flies high around the world. All women cockpit crew consisting of Capt Zoya Aggarwal, Capt Papagari Thanmai, Capt Akansha Sonaware & Capt Shivani Manhas will operate the historic inaugural flight between Bengaluru & San Francisco,” Civil Aviation Minister Hardeep Singh Puri said in a tweet.



"I feel truly privileged and humbled by the trust posed in me by the Civil Aviation Ministry and our flag carrier. It is a golden opportunity to command a Boeing 777 inaugural SFO-BLR, one of the longest flights over the North Pole," Captain Agarwal said while speaking to news agency ANI.

"This is the first time an all-women pilot's team will fly over the North Pole and create a history of sorts. It is indeed a dream-come-true for any professional pilot," she added.

Air India will operate two nonstop flights per week to Kempegowda International in Bengaluru. It will operate the flights using state-of-the-art Boeing 777-200LR long-range aircraft equipped with 238 seats.

Congratulating Air India for the first-ever non-stop flight from the United States to Bengaluru, the official Twitter handle of the San Francisco International Airport said, “We are pleased to welcome @airindiain's first-ever nonstop flights between San Francisco and Bangalore (Bengaluru), India! This new service represents the only nonstop flights between the United States and Bengaluru.”



In addition to its new Bengaluru Airport service, Air India also offers five non-stop flights per week between SFO and Delhi. This route, launched in December 2015, marked the first nonstop flights between India and the U.S. West Coast.