For every travel enthusiast, a window seat on an aeroplane offers the perfect view — a glimpse of the sky’s vastness and tranquillity. But while most of us admire the side view, have we ever wondered what it would be like to see the world from the front of the aircraft?

Well, Samaira Hullur did. Her fascination with aviation led her to become India’s youngest commercial pilot, earning her Commercial Pilot License (CPL) when she was just 18 years old.

But this remarkable achievement wasn’t hers alone — it was shaped by the support and encouragement of one person — her mother.

Mother’s love towards the uniform

Samaira Hullur, who is now 19 years old, from Bijapur, Karnataka, has always had a thing for adventure sports like horse riding, rock climbing, and swimming. But her aviation journey started because of one simple reason — her mother’s fascination with the uniform.

“When I was in Class 5, we got the opportunity to go on a helicopter as a part of the Navaraspur Utsav in Bijapur,” recalls Samaira. “My mother was sitting in the cockpit and was fascinated with the experience, especially the uniform.”

A few years later, another moment left a mark. “When I was at the Delhi airport, I could see the crew members walking, and people looking at them with respect. I wanted Samaira also to get the respect for the job she did,” says Nazeeya Hullur, Samaira’s mother and a coordinator at Delhi Public School, Bijapur.

“When I was in Class 9, I was sure that I did not want to do a desk job, nor did I want to pursue courses that required a lot of study,” shares Samaira, who lived in Vijayapura back then. “That’s when my mother suggested aviation as a career,” she says.

“In Class 10, I took an orientation class from Captain Thapesh Kumar to understand how to get into the field,” says Samaira.

Around this time, her mother, too, was actively helping her

© The Better India