Dubai:
Bahrain's national carrier Gulf Air's first woman captain, Yasmeen Fraidoon, has taken to the skies on her maiden commercial flight.
Captain Fraidoon joined Gulf Air in 2008 as a second officer, after graduating from Qatar Aeronautical College.
Accumulating the required flying hours, she completed the necessary training and went on to pass extensive and rigorous checks, successfully earning her fourth stripe and Captain ranking in March.
"Yasmeen's accomplishment today is a reflection of her hard work, exceptional skill and tireless determination," Nasser Al Salmi, Gulf Air Chief Operations Officer, said yesterday.
"We, the Gulf Air family, are incredibly proud to see the first female Bahraini Captain graduate from our ranks and do not doubt that she will be an example for many other Bahraini women looking to enter the field of aviation," he said.
"It is a great privilege to become Gulf Air's first female Bahraini Captain. I have been passionate about aviation from a young age and that passion has driven me to surpass every challenge and hurdle along this journey," Ms Fraidoon said.
"Being a captain for Bahrain's national carrier is a dream come true, and the fact that I'm the first Bahraini woman to do so is an even greater honour," she said.