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Air Force gets first female loadmaster

News Desk (The Jakarta Post)

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Jakarta

Mon, June 29, 2020 Published on Jun. 28, 2020 Published on 2020-06-28T22:28:34+07:00

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Second Lt. Dewa Ayu Ardikna Suari, the first female assigned as Air Force loadmaster.

S

econd Lt. Dewa Ayu Ardikna Suari has been named by the Indonesian Air Force as its first female loadmaster, in an unprecedented move in the male-dominated military force.

Graduating from the Air Force Academy in 2017, 25-year-old Ayu completed her three-month loadmaster training on Wednesday. She is currently assigned to the 2^nd Squadron at Halim Perdanakusuma Air Force Base in East Jakarta.

As the loadmaster in the Air Force, she will be responsible for the safe loading and unloading of cargo.

Commander of the 1^st Wing Transport, Col. Fata Patira, conferred the title on her in the training closing ceremony held at the base on Wednesday.

A native of Gianyar, Bali, Ayu expressed her gratitude for her assignment in the force.

“Without the blessing of God, my parents and sister and the support of my seniors, I could not possibly be a loadmaster like I am now,” she said in a press statement on Thursday, adding that she hoped there would be more female loadmasters in the Air Force.

Ayu said that becoming an Air Force officer was not her initial plan as she had dreamed of becoming a policewoman when she was a child. The dream, she said, was to follow in the footsteps of her father who serves in the police force.