An Indian headmaster has used more than $5,000 of his own money to give his students their first flight experience. Beerappa Andagi’s selfless act extended beyond students, with teachers and midday meal cooks taking part in the trip.

Indian Headmaster Makes Dreams Come True

According to an X post by Give, Beerappa Andagi has used $5,500 of his personal funds to give 24 students their first flight experience. Andagi, an Indian headmaster at a government school in Bahaddurbandi village, Koppal, paid for the tickets in a strong show of selflessness.

Per the report, the students travelled from Toranagallu’s Jindal Airport to Bengaluru, with two-way tickets costing as much as US$60.

A test administered by an external invigilator served as the deciding metric to select students for the trip to Bengaluru. Six students from Grades 5 to 8 made the cut for the first-time flight, with the Indian headmaster extending the gesture to teachers and other non-administrative staff.

“Seeing the happiness in their eyes is my greatest reward. Among these children could be future scientists, officers, pilots, and leaders,” said Andagi.

MP Rajashekar Hitnal praised Andagi’s selflessness, describing it as a shining example of commitment among teachers. For context, the average annual salary for Indian government teachers is around US$7,000.

Give noted that some dreams feel too distant, especially for children in rural India, where imagining a flight can seem impossible.

“I want them to believe that the sky truly belongs to them,” Andagi said.

Indian Headmaster Selects Future Leaders Through a Special Test

Teachers, mid-day meal staff, and members of the School Development and Monitoring Committee (SDMC) also accompanied them, taking the total group size to 40.

To select the students, the school conducted a special test for Classes 5 to 8, with the top six scorers from each class chosen for the journey.

Some dreams feel too distant, especially for children in rural India, where even imagining a flight seems impossible. But Beerappa Andagi, a government school headmaster in Koppal, Karnataka, changed that, giving 24 students this opportunity, spending ₹5 lakh of his own. pic.twitter.com/KV9q5Qn1fw

— Give (@GiveIndia) January 14, 2026

For many of the selected students, it was their first time boarding an aircraft, having previously only watched planes flying overhead. The group spent two days in Bengaluru, visiting educational institutions and tourist attractions, before returning to Koppal.

While the Indian education system is largely government-run, several international charities are supporting existing models with grants and the distribution of school supplies.