FLO Lucknow, under the leadership of Chairperson Simran Sahni, organized a programme titled Mission Udaan at GD Goenka Public School, Lucknow, in order to help girls build careers in hospitality & tourism.
The programme aims to simplify the entry of young women into tourism and hospitality, as they have never been formally introduced to these fastest-growing industries in India.
FLO Lucknow designed the programme around a clear, practical premise: bring real industry leaders, real training pathways, and genuine mentorship together in one place, and give young women a structured route into roles like Tourist Guide, Air Hostess, Airport Operations, Hotel Management, and Itinerary Planning.
Not vague career inspiration, but free training tied directly to roles that are actively hiring.
The objective extended across five universities simultaneously — University of Lucknow, Integral University, Amity University, Dr. Ram Manohar Lohia Avadh University, and Lucknow Public College — reflecting FLO Lucknow’s intent to reach young women across a genuinely broad cross-section of the city’s academic institutions, not a single, self-selecting audience.
Bringing together leaders from aviation, tourism, and hospitality on a single platform gave the initiative real industry weight from day one — signalling that this was a programme built on genuine sectoral commitment, not just chapter-level enthusiasm.
Nearly 150 students from five universities registered for the programme, committing to free training and mentorship across a specific set of high-demand roles.
Mission Udaan’s launch brought together a genuinely impressive cross-section of industry leadership:
- Mr. Deepak Khare — Air India
- Mr. Sameer Sharma — IndiGo
- Ms. Preeti Srivastava — UP Tourism
- Mr. S. M. A. Sheeraz — Sheeraz Tours
- Mr. Prateek Hira — FICCI
- Mr. Sarvesh Goel — Centrum
Panel Discussion
The afternoon’s panel discussion gave the launch its practical substance.
Mr. Deepak Khare of Air India and Mr. Sameer Sharma of IndiGo brought direct aviation industry perspective, addressing what airlines actually look for in candidates and what a realistic career trajectory in the sector looks like.
Ms. Preeti Srivastava of UP Tourism connected the conversation to the state’s own tourism growth ambitions, while Mr. S. M. A. Sheeraz of Sheeraz Tours offered ground-level insight into tour operations and itinerary planning as a genuine, scalable career option.
Mr. Prateek Hira of FICCI and Mr. Sarvesh Goel of Centrum rounded out the panel, adding institutional and hospitality industry perspectives, respectively.
Key Takeaways
- Mission Udaan was launched with a genuinely industry-packed panel, giving FLO Lucknow’s career pathway initiative strong sectoral credibility from day one.
- The programme covers structured pathways into Tourist Guide, Air Hostess, Airport Operations, Hotel Management, and Itinerary Planning roles.
- An industry-packed panel featuring Air India, IndiGo, UP Tourism, Sheeraz Tours, FICCI, and Centrum gave students direct access to real employers and real career insight.
- Strong industry participation at launch signals that Mission Udaan is positioned as a credible, sector-recognised pathway, not merely a chapter-level career awareness initiative.
- Reaching students across 5 universities simultaneously reflects FLO Lucknow’s commitment to broad, cross-institutional access rather than concentrated impact within a single student community.
- Direct engagement with aviation and hospitality industry leaders bridges the persistent gap between classroom learning and actual industry hiring practices.
- Tourism and hospitality’s rapid growth as a sector makes it a genuinely significant, underutilised career opportunity for young women in Uttar Pradesh.
- Free training and mentorship removes a critical financial barrier that might otherwise prevent interested students from pursuing this career pathway.
- Mission Udaan establishes a scalable, industry-backed model that FLO Lucknow can build upon with subsequent training cohorts and expanded partnerships.
Impact & Outcome
For 150+ students, the afternoon converted a distant, unfamiliar industry into something concrete — a set of real roles, real employers, and a real, funded pathway to enter them.
Mission Udaan’s launch gave Lucknow’s young women something rare: direct access to the people who can actually open the doors this programme promises to lead them toward.