Engine Fails at 1000 Feet: Pune Pilot Bhavika Rathod Crash-Lands Solo Flight, Walks Away with Just Scratches After Mid-Air Scare

Some moments change the course of our lives forever and for 24-year-old Bhavika Rathod from Pune’s Swargate, that moment came mid-air, 1,000 feet above the ground. What began as a routine solo training flight ended in a sudden engine failure that could have shattered her dreams of becoming a pilot. Instead, it became the turning point in a story of survival, resilience, and determination.

Bhavika’s love for aviation took root during her school days at Muktangan English School, sparked by a guest lecture from a visiting pilot. That spark soon became a goal. After finishing Class 12 in 2019, she set her sights on a commercial pilot licence (CPL). The COVID-19 pandemic delayed her start, but in October 2021, she finally joined Carver Aviation in Baramati.

By mid-2022, Bhavika had completed 150 flying hours, just 50 shy of the 200 required for a CPL. On July 25, she was on a routine cross-country solo in a Cessna-152 when, just 15 nautical miles into the flight, disaster struck — the engine suddenly failed as told to Indian Express.

“There was no warning,” Bhavika recalls. “I had seconds to act.”

With no chance of returning to the airstrip, she made a split-second decision to land in an open patch of farmland near Kadbanwadi village, Indapur. Her training kicked in, and she executed a controlled crash landing. The aircraft sustained only minor damage. Bhavika walked away with a few scratches and miraculously, no one on the ground was injured.

The Director General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) launched a mandatory investigation. Bhavika faced three days of questioning and was grounded during a mandatory “cooling period.” The experience left her shaken.

“I began to doubt everything my abilities, my future, my dream,” she says. In the following months, she slipped into depression and stepped away from aviation, enrolling in a BBA course and considering a role in her family’s business.

But her support system refused to let her quit. Family and friends reminded her of how far she had come, urging her to get back in the cockpit.

Their encouragement paid off. In December 2022, Bhavika received her no-objection certificate for corrective training. A month later, she returned to Carver Aviation, where the journey had once almost ended.

Her instructor, Captain Madhav Raj Singh, and her peers played a crucial role in helping her overcome the psychological scars of the crash. “Every time I flew again, the fear was there. But slowly, with every flight, I began to believe in myself again,” she says.

By September 2023, Bhavika had achieved what once felt impossible she earned her Commercial Pilot Licence. And she didn’t stop there.

She went on to complete her Airbus A320 type rating in Spain an intensive 45-day advanced training program and is now preparing to join a commercial airline. Her dream? Flying the legendary Airbus A380.

Social media unexpectedly became a space for healing and purpose. After Bhavika shared her story online, aspiring pilots who had faced similar setbacks reached out. “I never thought I’d inspire others, but I’ve been where they are. I know what fear and self-doubt feel like,” she says.

Her message is one of hope:
“Don’t give up, even when it feels like everything is falling apart. Courage and belief in yourself will help you rise again.”

Bhavika Rathod’s journey isn’t just about surviving a plane crash it’s about rising stronger. Her story reminds us that sometimes, when it feels like we’re falling, we’re actually learning to fly.