Out of high school and straight to flying school, Nicole Swart seems to have figured out her aspirations at Concorde speed. She acquired her pilot’s license at the age of 19, when most girls are only just beginning to dream of high-flying careers.
Starting out as a receptionist in a cleaning company to save enough for her instructors’ course and clock up enough flying hours, Swart is today officially the first person on the continent to be awarded a license to fly drones – and she is only 23.
To the uninitiated, a drone is an aircraft without a pilot onboard. Its flight is controlled either autonomously by inbuilt computers or by remote control. Two weeks after remotely-piloted aircraft systems were integrated into the South African civil aviation airspace, Swart was handed the license.
Any comparisons with Star Wars and military drone strikes are quickly dispelled by her; it’s a world away from being mere instruments of war.
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“Drones used to be for the military and transporting things, now they’re for crop-spraying. The more advanced the equipment, the more weight it can carry. I don’t foresee drones carrying passengers soon but maybe in about 50 years,” says Swart.
She holds the ‘highest’ pilot’s license – the airline transport pilot’s license. When she’s not flying planes or remotely-piloted aircraft, she is working as a testing standards officer, aviation personnel standards, at SACAA (South African Civil Aviation Authority).
“With flying, it is all about hours. I built up 1,500 hours which is enough for an airline transfer pilot license after I reached the threshold of instruction. I began with the Civil Aviation Authority and was placed in the Unmanned Aircraft department where we had to do research and help develop regulations,” she says.
Working with unmanned aircraft ignited a new passion; Swart went into training and saw an opportunity to learn about drones.
“I didn’t know about it before. They took off in 2007 – the military used it and now unmanned aircraft are in South Africa. It’s crazy,” she says.
A lot of the theoretical components were similar to manned aviation but from a technical point of view, it was an entirely different world.
“The flying side is very different from manned aviation. With an aircraft, you are physically inside it. If you turn right, it turns right. With drones, you have to imagine yourself in the aircraft. It isn’t as easy,” she says.
“This is where aviation is heading to – the future is in unmanned aircraft. You get different types, from 50 grams to seven tons – the range of drones is crazy. I flew a two kilogram remote controlled drone. Basically training is to understand the concept but my interest is in the complex ones where one uses data links and satellites and GPS points,” she says.
South Africa is one of a handful of countries around the world to have introduced comprehensive regulations to guide remote pilot operations.
“Being a third world country, no one expected us or anyone in Africa to be developing regulations. It is a huge deal – we are getting feedback from other countries. They want our advice on how to regulate their countries.”
For Swart, getting her drone license is just the beginning for breaking gender boundaries. She’s setting out to challenge the jokes about female pilots by flying right through the glass ceiling.
“People joke about gender but in the flying world you have to work harder and prove yourself. Once you enter the world you will do anything to be a part of it and work your way up. When I was a student there were 10 girls out of 300. When I left the school, there were 100 females,” she says.
Swart is only just embarking on her journey. She holds the first drone license on the continent and is on her way to becoming a commercial flight pilot, a flight instructor and examiner, but her first few flights have stuck with her.
“I didn’t think I would be ready for my first solo flight – I didn’t even know it was happening. They call the route a circuit. The instructor told me to stop – I thought I had done something wrong but he said ‘now you are flying by yourself’. It was the best feeling of my life. Every time you take off you get a rush and no two landings are the same. I have never experienced anything greater,” she says.
“Once I had a gear emergency, my gear wouldn’t come down which is quite a big deal as you need your wheels. I followed steps and all my training paid off and I had to handle the emergency and land safely.”
Needless to say, she made a safe landing – following protocol to a tee without breaking a sweat. The sky certainly isn’t the limit for this pilot.

Nicole-033

Something To Drone About

Its 4PM on a Friday in Johannesburg and the traffic is building up. All of Johannesburg is going home, but the night is young for Cindy Mashao, a Uber driver. She picks us up from our Sandton offices, and lets us ride with her.
Uber is a technology company connecting riders with drivers through a smartphone app. Mashao owns a hair salon in Alexandra, a black township in Gauteng, but now, as part of the Uber network, she has, like her counterparts worldwide, the opportunity to be the CEO of her own taxi.
Mashao was one of Uber’s first female drivers in South Africa when she joined the network late last year. In just under two years of its operation in South Africa, 4% of Uber’s drivers are women. In the United States (US), the corresponding number is 14%.
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“Given that the US as a country is significantly bigger than South Africa and Uber has been in the US for five years, South Africa being at this level is really exceptional and the growth possibilities are very exciting,” says Samantha Allenberg, Uber’s spokesperson.
Mashao expertly navigates the back roads to get out of grid-locked Sandton at this peak hour.
“I stay far away from Sandton [as far as possible] when I’m working,” she says. With most businesses operating in this affluent part of Johannesburg, traffic is always a nightmare.
Mashao is a live wire and brimming with stories. As we drive to her usual spot, which is a petrol-station in Morningside, she tells us that drunk customers are her favorite because they make driving exciting and the ride eventful. There is never a dull moment. Her passengers in the morning are usually stressed office-goers, so there is little room for friendly banter.
Its 4.30PM and we start in Morningside at the end of the ever-busy Rivonia road where she waits for ride-requests.
“Morningside is like home for me. It’s where I started,” she says as she greets other drivers, mostly male.
Listening to the radio on the commute all day ensures she’s clued in on the latest music and current affairs.
It helps her find common ground with her passengers. She learns a lot from them too.
“I got a recipe for beer from one,” she tells us excitedly.
Her phone has been unusually silent and we decide to drive around the area. She shows us her Uber app, there are four other cars in the area.
“You’ve got to be sneaky and clever to get requests,” she says cheekily.
An alert goes off on her phone and we’re off to pick up her first customer, in Bryanston.
Our first rider tells us of his amusing Uber mishaps as we drive to the upmarket Sandton City mall. He had once drunkenly requested an Uber van, which seats six and is used for larger groups, only to be greeted by a very confused driver looking for the rest of the passengers. We drop him off and Mashao jokingly tells him not to make the same mistake tonight.
We head to Mashao’s usual Friday night spot at The Waterford Shopping Centre in Fourways. As we pull into the center, a request goes off on her phone and we’re on the move again.
It’s 6PM and we pick up a teacher on his way to a school play. He’s in high spirits after a long week. “It’s Friday night so I thought why not? Uber always has your back,” he says.
There’s a power cut and the area is dark but Mashao expertly maneuvers through the traffic.
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The calm and collected Mashao says her scariest moment was picking up a passenger from a wedding at The Cradle of Humankind, a World Heritage Site located 50 kilometers northwest of Johannesburg. It was 2AM and the road to the venue was a dirt track.
The Uber app had alerted the passengers about the driver’s profile. Seeing that they had a female driver arriving to pick them up, they had a bouquet of flowers waiting for Mashao.
“It made it worth it,” she says.
We stop at a garage in Honeydew as she reapplies her lipstick land freshens up in the restroom. It’s the only break she has had. We’re in a quiet area and there are no alerts on her phone.
Its 7PM and we head to Melville, a bustling area cluttered with bars and restaurants.
She makes a sudden U-turn as she receives a request. We fetch two 12-year-olds on their first date. We get off as they get in.
They hold hands in the back seat and steal coy glances at each other. We agree to meet Mashao in Melville after she drops them off.
“Fridays are usually busy, you guys must be bad luck,” she says with a laugh. It has been quiet but every moment is an adventure for Mashao.
The night is still young, filled with umpteen possibilities.

Uber-driver-080

Friday Evening With A Female Cab Driver

Bread and butter. Horse and carriage. Aston Martin and Bond… James Bond.
Even though 007 started out in a Chevrolet Bel Air convertible in Dr No, and has been behind the wheel of a wild assortment of vehicles from a tuk-tuk taxi to a Ford Mustang, it is the British supercar that has an immediate association with the superspy.
And in particular the DB5 which is the iconic Bond-mobile, from Goldfinger to Skyfall nearly 50 years later!
While Aston Martin Lagonda Limited may have had a rather chequered financial history since the company was founded by Lionel Martin and Robert Bamford in 1913, it is the Bond connotation that has helped to keep the brand high on the supercar desirability scale.
It is, however, an association that is steeped in irony. While the movies portrayed the Astons as the perfect vehicle for Q’s cutting edge gadgetry, in the high-tech real world of modern supercars they may have slipped a gear or two.
This is certainly not on your mind though as you paddle through the seven-speed automated manual transmission with the soft top down and the sport button activated to give you a boost in performance and a sample of auditory heaven. A good reason to leave the 1,000 watt Bang &amp; Olufsen stereo off the options list.
And it’s the fact that the gearbox is not as smooth as Banarasi silk that makes the V12 Vantage S Roadster fun – and challenging – to drive. You feel that you are part of the equation for every perfect gear change.
Is that an excuse and will Aston Martin continue to rely on class, image and a colorful history rather than leading the way in automotive engineering?
A clue is that they are spending millions of pounds on state-of-the-art manufacturing facilities at their Gaydon, Warwickshire plant developing their next generation of sports cars.
As we weave through traffic on the highway, the general manager of Aston Martin in Sandton, Rens Rademeyer, assures me that the brand is not going the mass production route.
They make less than 5,000 finely crafted vehicles a year. And as you survey the instrument panel, getting to know the precisely positioned controls and admiring the craftsmanship of the interior styling, you get the overwhelming feeling that every Aston is tailor-made.
“It’s beyond bespoke,” he says. “We assimilate a client’s DNA into the final product.”
To get your creative juices flowing, or even racing, there is a delicately prepared ‘Q’ book to page through with the aim of ensuring that every stitch of leather, every color choice, reflects your personality. Which I could find rather daunting!
“When Egyptology was the big thing, a client wanted scarab beetle wings inlaid into our emblem. The Aston Martin wings have to stay within the spirit of the brand but our appointed jeweler in London was able to blend the two,” says Rademeyer.
“Another customer from China wanted a special piece from his Ming vase collection stitched into his seatbacks. We even had an order from America for all the interior finishes to reflect his superyacht!”
The personal details and options come at a price. While the basic Vantage Roadster will set you back a tad over $260,000, the extras on a well-specced vehicle can easily add $40,000 to the bill.
While the local distributors haven’t had a price increase in three years, it’s no secret that most supercars see a significant drop in value as they are driven off the showroom floor.
Rademeyer claims that there are some unique opportunities in the low production, high demand strategy and you can still make a profit with some intensive research – and ready cash – to get your hands on the exclusive models.
The race-inspired Vantage GT12 is an example. It is still in production but you could no doubt sell your place on the limited order list of 100 at a premium.
South Africans will get to see the sleeker, lighter, more powerful version of the Vantage S dodging potholes on their roads.
And now we await the DB10, one of the star turns in Spectre – the 24th James Bond film to be shot by Eon Productions.
But Daniel Craig will be one of the few people to get behind the wheel; Aston Martin is only making 10 of them.
So the well-heeled will have to wait for the DB11 which will certainly take a healthy slice of design influence from the Bond car.
Will the Best of British be sought after on the African continent?
Despite a lack of infrastructure and service agents to the north, Astons are sold from Angola to Nigeria and Ghana to Equatorial Guinea.
It seems that whoever we are and wherever we live, we can feel Bond on our shoulder as we climb into that beautifully appointed cabin and know that the iconic grille and badge are attracting some envious looks.
After all, you only live twice.

Astons Are Forever

If history wasn’t your strongest subject at school, don’t try to analyze Audi’s journey through the automotive world. As a crib note, all you need to know is that a fellow by the name of August Horch founded a string of companies using his surname in the early 1900s.
The problem was Horch fell out with his fellow directors and started yet another company under his name. In an ironic twist, he was sued for trademark infringement and the German Reichsgericht (Supreme Court) in Leipzig found that the Horch brand belonged to his former group.
So, he set up a meeting with a few business associates to find a new name.
The old timers were getting nowhere until one of their sons piped up with a logical suggestion. Because “horch” means hark or hear in German, why not call the new outfit Audi – the singular imperative form of audire, to listen, in Latin.
Thus, on April 25, 1910, the Audi Automobilwerke GmbH Zwickau was born. But there have been around a dozen name and organizational changes along the way.
Twenty years later, the rift with August was forgotten. Horch and Audi merged, along with two other German manufacturers, DKW and Wanderer. And the new Auto Union was represented by the now famous four rings.
Yes it is close to the Olympic logo and don’t think the legal beagles of the IOC didn’t notice. They sued Audi in 1995 for copying their trademark&#8230; and got counted out in that fight.
So we’ve got a name and a logo – time to talk cars and money.
To say that there have been some rocky roads on Audi’s journey would be like saying that Stephen Hawking overcame a few challenges.
When World War II broke out, the Auto Union plants were switched to military production. As a distinct target for Allied bombing, they were badly damaged. The entire assets of the company, down to the last spanner, were appropriated without compensation and the name of Auto Union was deleted from the commercial register.
A slight setback to be sure. The flickering flame was kept alight by the former Audi factory in Zwickau starting production of pre-war models in 1949 and a new Auto Union was launched in Ingolstadt with hefty loans from the Bavarian state government.
Today, a new war has broken out. Audi, BMW and Mercedes Benz are battling over sales. But it seems that logic may be flying out of the electric window, with profits being the casualty.
The clash for clients is on three fronts. Develop enviable technology, build a string of new factories and put as many new models on showroom floors.
Audi’s armory for this all-out war may surprise you. Going by last year’s production figures, BMW led the way with 1.81 million cars and Audi were only 70,000 behind, with Mercedes only managing the bronze medal. In fact, Audi led the way in worldwide sales for the first two months of this year and have already sold in excess of 1.3 million vehicles up to September.
Even a motoring hack can tell the difference between sales and profits. Audi has earmarked 26 billion euros for expansion, including new factories in Mexico and Brazil, and is preparing to extend its range to 60 models by 2020.
Audi’s chief bean counter, Axel Strotbek, put a delicate spin on it at a news conference.
“The profit development will continue to reflect our company’s extensive expenditure for the future. We are shouldering massive upfront investments.”
In the heat of battle, the Teutonic trio are boosting sales volumes by building smaller, more affordable cars. But some analysts say that it doesn’t boost the bottom line with Audi’s pre-tax profit running at about $500 per car less than Mercedes Benz.
Yet this is all small potatoes compared to the rise of Audi over the past two decades.
The early eighties brought some catastrophic setbacks, like the raft of reported incidents of so-called sudden unintended acceleration linked to the Audi 5000 models in the United States.
Although the distinction between a manufacturing fault and driver error was never definitively proven, sales fell dramatically to a pathetic 12,283 units amid the recalls and modifications.
Resale values plummeted, reliability and service levels were ridiculed and the future of Audi looked bleak.
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Audi, however, reinvented itself. New technologies and features, along with engine upgrades and aluminum construction, helped turn the tide. Extended warrantees and service plans brushed the cobwebs from the order books.
Worldwide sales almost doubled in the first decade of the new millennium. Africa, along with the Middle East, Eastern Europe and China, spearheaded the revolution. Audi was on its way to becoming the profit engine of Europe’s biggest carmaker – Volkswagen.
Now the aim is to overtake BMW as the top seller in the German luxury car market.
Going small may be the focus of the crusade for sales, but the latest offering is at the other end of the scale! Enter the all new Audi Q7, which was first launched at the Frankfurt Motor Show a decade ago.
I tested the Audi Q7 3.0 TDI Quattro Tiptronic – a hefty description of a hefty seven-seater SUV – although it has slimmed down by 300 kilograms thanks to the aluminum suspension and weight-saving in almost every department.
Stylish may be an extravagant term in the brutish SUV market, but that massive Audi grille makes a statement and the interior is elegant and contemporary in its simplicity. It’s all about functionality and every control seems to be right at your fingertips.
What is impressive is how smoothly and quietly the new Q7 rolls over South African terrain, which seems to be laced with more potholes and speed humps by the day. You will struggle to find a more comfortable SUV.
The rumbling power belies the quoted 0-100km/h acceleration of 6.9 seconds and this is not a vehicle that wants to take on all-comers at the lights. But then you wouldn’t be buying a SUV of this size if you were still a boy racer.
What you are getting is the very latest technology – from the much less thirsty and more efficient diesel engine to refined driving aids and safety features.
The list of safety aids is endless. Emergency braking for cars, bikes or pedestrians you may not have seen, warnings if you open a door and there is an oncoming vehicle, and even self-steering when reversing with a trailer.
This Q7 could make you feel overconfident as it keeps in the correct lane and plays follow the leader with the car in front.
“Audi is currently the leader in autonomous driving research on a global scale,” says Audi South Africa’s PR Manager, Sameerah Bhabha.
“Matrix LED headlights is another highlight unique to the market,” says Bhabha. They shine around oncoming cars.
While some Audi models are in the late stages of their lifecycle, 2016 promises to be a bumper year with the launch of the all-new Audi A4 in February followed by the exhilarating R8 Coupe and a facelifted A3 range towards the end of the year.
And it’s not all about South Africa.
“We view the sub-Saharan market as a major growth opportunity and intend increasing the Audi footprint to key areas where we are currently not represented.”
The gloves are certainly off for the pretenders to the luxury car market throne. In the process, this trio will probably bring about the biggest changes in the most dangerous thing we do every day… open the car door.
August Horch would be proud.

Let’s Hear It For Audi

Europe and America have surely made inroads when it comes to environment-friendly electric vehicles (EV), manufacturing and finding enough customers for them, but Africa is still lagging behind in this respect.
Electric cars, which help curb greenhouse gas emissions, have been introduced in Africa, but car manufacturers admit they are yet to see a major shift from petrol- and diesel-driven cars to green cars. Clynton Yon, Product Manager of car major Toyota in South Africa, says it’s simply due to a lack of interest from the market.
“Hybrid technology is not cheap but in Europe and the US, the financial rebates buyers receive from the government [on initial purchase and also when it comes to taxes for insurance and emissions, for example congestion tax] make it a far more viable proposition. There also appears to be reluctance on the part of South Africans to adopt a greener lifestyle if it’s going to involve a higher initial financial outlay,” says Yon.
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Electric cars are still fairly expensive, and with reference to local sales, admittedly, hybrids have not achieved the kind of retail numbers they have elsewhere. The most obvious reason for this is the financial rebates offered by first-world countries are not available in South Africa, according to Yon.
“That said, Toyota has made a concerted effort to make hybrid variants more accessible. The Yaris HSD for example is the most affordable hybrid on the market,” says Yon. The Yaris HSD costs R230,000 ($21,700).
Electric engines give electric cars instant torque, creating strong and smooth acceleration. These cars first appeared in the 1880s, and were popular in the 19th and 20th centuries, until advances in combustion technology and production of cheaper petrol vehicles led to a decline in the use of electric cars.
Since 2008, a renaissance in electric vehicle manufacturing has occurred due to advances in battery and power management technology, concerns about increasing oil prices and the need to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
If as a continent, Africa were to catch up with markets such as Europe, a lot needs to be done to educate the consumer about the effects of global warming.
About 144,000 units of another green car entrant, the Nissan LEAF, have been sold around the world, a large percentage of those sales owing to Europe since its launch in December 2010. At the moment, the LEAF commands 33% of the EV passenger car market in Europe, it sold more than 5,600 more units in 2013 versus 2012, cementing its position as a best-selling 100% electric vehicle.
The success of the Nissan LEAF in Europe has been especially propelled by strong sales in Norway where it became the best-selling car at the end of January with 650 units.
Since its launch in South Africa in November last year, the LEAF has taken off well, according to Dudu Mwelase, General Manager of Corporate Communications at Nissan South Africa. About 20 Nissan LEAF cars were sold in the first three months, but Nissan expects to sell a 100 in the first year.
Mwelase says her company’s aim is to bring about as much EV ownership as possible.
“As mobility in Africa starts to increase, there will obviously be a move to introduce environmentally-friendly vehicles. We do not foresee a mass Nissan LEAF introduction on the continent at this stage.”
Customers see electric cars as an appendage of the ongoing endorsement of all things green. For example, Heleen Ball, one of South Africa’s first LEAF customers, says that even though she was not supportive of the idea when her husband first suggested it, the car now works very well with their green lifestyle. She uses the car two or three times a week.
Plans to bring the BMW electric models to South Africa are also in full swing. The first model, the BMW i3 is earmarked for March 2015. The i3 could have been here earlier but because demand was exceeding expectations in a number of key European markets, South Africa has had to wait.
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“To ensure an acceptable waiting period for all customers who have ordered the i3, we have decided to delay market launch in South Africa and a number of countries where the i3 is not yet on sale,” says Edward Makwana, Automotive Communications Manager of BMW, South Africa.
At this stage, these cars will only be available in South Africa.
“We currently have around 11,000 pre-orders worldwide and more than 100,000 test drive requests. Customer-demand and interest in test drives exceed current production capacity. Dealers worldwide report they could sell more BMW i3s if they had them. We are also seeing a growing interest from local customers,” says Makwana. It’s clearly a green signal for electric cars.

Eco-warriors  On The Road

The new BMW X5 M50d awaits at the carpark of Richards Bay Airport in South Africa. I am to drive it to Mozambique, and it’s an estimated three-and-half-hour’s road-trip to the nearest border. I have always flown to Mozambique. Let the fun and games of driving begin.
This beauty on wheels has a lively, modern diesel engine with road prowess. My suitcases are loaded into the spacious boot. After hours of driving, I arrive at the Kosi Bay Border post. I point north, and the vehicle is about to embark on a journey out of its norm, away from the city streets.
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The off-road journey, though not on the toughest terrain, is quite sandy. The distance of 21 kilometers seems short on paper, but given the roads, it will take a while. I navigate deep into Mozambique, passing small villages along the way.
Only a few hours ago, the BMW X5 M50d had passed the test of being driven on the tar and gravel roads of northern KwaZulu-Natal with flying colors.
It had displayed magnificent road attitude and handled the open road like a big sedan. The vehicle sticks to the road like a dog to a bone.
It is a driver-oriented vehicle that instils confidence in the driver with its well-mannered suspension.
Driven by the 3.0-liter tri-turbocharged engine that pumps out 280kW of power, this X5 loves the road. Just push your foot against the the accelerator and see.
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Heels On  Wheels

What drew you to the aviation industry?
I decided to become a pilot when I was four years old. I would see the big noisy bird take off and land at Bujumbura International Airport. I was fortunate enough to fly on the big bird, when I was seven years old, on a family trip to the United States. It was my first flight on a commercial airplane and I loved it.
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Where did you study?
I started my training at Soroti Flying School, also known as East Africa Civil Aviation Academy, in Uganda. I then got a scholarship with RwandAir to continue my commercial license training at Vero Beach Florida, US, at Flight Safety Academy.
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How many people graduated from your flight school and how many of them were women?
At Soroti Flying School, two women had graduated before me that I know of. At Flight Safety Academy, the number was bigger. There were up to 20 female students from all over the world, including the first female pilot from Saudi Arabia, Hanadi Zakaria al-Hindi. There were about 10 female instructors and the chief pilot, Nancy Ritter, was also female. But as many as we were, we did not even make up five percent of the academy.
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How did you feel when you became the first female pilot in Rwanda?
Making history is not my goal, achieving my goals is what I delight in. After getting my commercial license I did not celebrate, I was looking forward to the next cockpit I would get into.
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Your father passed away in a plane crash when you were eight. Did that affect your decision in any way?
No, it did not keep me from my dream. We do not stop driving because loved ones die in car crashes, why stop now? However, it made me realize the value of lives I have on board, so safety is definitely a big deal to me as a pilot.
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Why do you think there are so few women pilots in the world?
Aviation is perceived to be a male career. As the first female pilot in Rwanda, I feel proud to have paved the way for all young dreamers, male or female, to achieve their dreams.
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What challenges have you faced? Do you feel you always have to prove yourself as a woman?
I like to view my challenges as the reasons to celebrate having reached my goal. As a woman in a male-dominated field, there is no doubt that you have to prove yourself, but hard work always pays off.
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What is your power principle?
Do what you love to do and people will appreciate it.

Category: Driving Ambition

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