Sirisha Bandla

On July 11, Virgin Galactic, Sir Richard Branson's space flight company, sent spacecraft VSS Unity into space, along with Sirisha Bandla. This already historic flight made Bandla the second Indian-born woman in space. So, who is Sirisha Bandla?

Originally from Guntur in Andhra Pradesh, her parents immigrated to Houston, Texas, when she was just four years old. Who wouldn't be fascinated by space when NASA's headquarters are right by you? But, it was not all smooth sailing, or, in this case, I should say not all smooth flying! Because of issues with her eyesight, Bandla was not able to join NASA. However, she was still determined to pursue her interest in space, so she shifted her focus to the area of commercial space flight.

“We don’t know how she got interested in aircraft, stars and skies. It has been in her since childhood. Whatever she has achieved today is on her own accord, and her parents gave her full freedom to pursue her dream. She has proved her excellence and rose to the occasion" - Bandla's grandfather.

Bandla furthered her path to the skies by attending Purdue University and obtaining a degree in aeronautical engineering. Additionally, she went to Georgetown University to get her Master of Business Administration. After graduating, she joined the Commercial Spaceflight Federation as an aerospace engineer. In 2015, Bandla began working at Virgin Galactic, and, as of today, she worked her way to become the Vice President of government affairs.

For the 22nd test flight of VSS Unity, Bandla was chosen to be a part of the team of six, which includes billionaire Sir Richard Branson. During the mission, Bandla was entrusted with the responsibility of "evaluating the human-tended research experience." It was a historic event for commercial space travel and for young girls everywhere who one day hope to go to space.