This photo from
1950s shows Air Hostess Arjumand Ahmad at Beirut's Carlton Hotel where PIA crew stayed in those days. Arjumand Ahmad was the
first Muslim Pakistani Air Hostess of the first batch that
joined PIA in 1956. Before her there were Australian & Christian
Pakistani Air Hostesses working with PIA. Arjumand Ahmad after
passing her Intermediate exam from Queen Marry College, Lahore,
was admitted in George Washington University, Washington, D.C.,
where she attended specialized courses in her favorite subject
Psychology, later she was granted President of United States
Grant/Scholarship for higher studies at Goucher College,
Baltimore, Maryland. Due to her father's illness she returned to
Pakistan without completing her studies. In Pakistan, because
the Psychology subject was in its infancy, she did not join any
job for one & half year. Then appeared an advertisement in
newspapers for the job of Air Hostess in PIA for girls from
educated families. One thousand girls from all over Pakistan
appeared for the interview and only six were selected and again
out of which only four completed the training, these four were:
1) Miss. Arjumand Ahmad, 2) Miss. Hutoxi Panthakey (a VVIP Air
Hostess who died in PIA Boeing 720B crash in Cairo on May 20,
1965), 3) Miss. Shaheen and 4) Miss. Grace (she left after third
day of flying due to persistent air-sickness). Due to traveling
in acute pneumonia Arjumand suffered some health complications
and in 1965 joined PIA's Ground Training School, Karachi, where
she conducted basic training & refreshers till her retirement in
1993 after more than 27 years of service with PIA. At Ground
Training School, Arjumand was affectionately called 'Aapi'
by her students and from 1965 to 1993 every cabin crew has been
her student!! During her flying career she flew on Super
Constellation, Dakota DC-3, Convair CV-240, Vickers Viscount,
Trident, Boeing 720B, Boeing 707 and as a Flight Service
Instructor she trained Cabin Crew for all types of aircraft
operated by PIA between 1965 and 1993 |