Sikh Woman Pilot Named 1st Officer for American Eagle

After 28-year-old Sikh American Arpinder Kaur of San Antonio, Texas, was hired in March as first officer by American Eagle, a regional airline and a unit of American Airlines Corp., she showed up for training wearing her turban, which, she told the airline, was worn as a tenet of her religion.
The airline asked her to fill out an “Accommodation Form” for approved headwear. The airline gave the OK and several months later Kaur was in the cockpit co-piloting a commercial flight for a major U.S. carrier.
The San Antonio-based Sikh Research Institute said Kaur, as far as can be determined, is the “first turbaned Sikh pilot to fly for a commercial airline in the United States.”
She told India-West that, while the wearing of turbans by Sikh women is a practice “lost in the past,” Kaur believes that because Sikhism says men and women are equal, she is practicing her faith when she wears the head garment.
Kaur now flies Embraer Jets for American Eagle out of Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport. Her routes range from Toronto and Montreal, Canada, to Mexican destinations.
She said there were two reasons she went through the trouble of the accommodation process. First was her “love of flying.” Second was “to set a precedent for the community so they know you can be in your Sikh appearance and do anything out there — so that my younger brothers and sisters will pursue their passions while practicing their Sikh faith.”
Kaur told India-West that she “gets stares” when she boards the plane and passengers realize she may be the one flying it, “but I get stares anyway. People have been really nice about it.”
Kaur added that she is “very impressed” by American Airlines’ willingness to accommodate her religious beliefs.
29/08/08 Richard Springer/San Leandro India West, USA

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Categories: Foreign Aug 2008