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Bhutan

Queen of Bhutan meets first all female flight crew on International Women’s Day

Her Majesty Queen Jetsun Pema of Bhutan met the first all-female flight crew of a Druk Air flight yesterday morning at Paro Airport, poignantly on International Women’s Day.

The Queen, also called The Gyaltsuen, spoke to the crew of Druk Air KB 130 and congratulated them on making history as the first all-female flight crew.

The Royal Office for Media explained about the women, “The crew included the country’s first female Captain, Ugyen Dema, Sr. First Officer, Sonam Lhamo, and the country’s first female licensed flight engineer, Sonam Deki Tshering, along with an all-women cabin crew, push back team, check-in, catering, and other ground staff.”

“Druk Air employs 168 women, who constitute 35.44% of its total workforce. According to Druk Air, the milestone flight celebrates the indispensable contribution of women to the airline and the aviation industry, and intends to inspire more women to join the aviation industry in the future,” they continued.

Photo: Royal Office for Media

She posed for pictures alongside the women before concluding her visit. After Her Majesty departed, the crew took off on their way to Bangkok, Thailand.

The visit by Queen Jetsun Pema was shared on Her Majesty’s official Facebook page with two images from the day. She is known to be very active on her social media channel to share her events and events of His Majesty The King.

The Queen is the wife of King Jigme Namgyel Wangchuck, who ascended the throne after the abdication of his father, King Jigme Singye Wangchuck, on 9 December 2006. The reigning monarch’s coronation took place in November 2008.

King Jigme Nangyel announced his engagement to Jetsun Pema at an opening of Bhutan’s parliament on 20 May 2011. The pair married on 13 October 2011 in what was described as Bhutan’s largest media event in history.

Together, they have one child, Crown Prince Jigme Namgyel Wangchuck (also called The Gyalsey) who was born in Lingkana Palace on 5 February 2016.

About author

Brittani is from Tennessee, USA. She is a political scientist and historian after graduating with a degree in the topics from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, in December 2014. She also holds a master's degree from Northeastern University. She enjoys reading and researching all things regarding the royals of the world. She's been researching, reading, and writing on royalty for over a decade. She became Europe Editor in October 2016, and then Deputy Editor in January 2019, and has been featured on several podcasts, radio shows, news broadcasts and websites including Global News Canada, ABC News Australia, WION India and BBC World News.