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.

Feel  The Fear And Fly Anyway

Esther Mbabazi was eight when her father died in a plane crash in the Democratic Republic of Congo. This could have deterred her childhood dream of being a pilot. It didn’t and Mbabazi found comfort in the skies.
“We don’t stop driving because loved ones die in car crashes, why stop now? However it just made me realize the value of lives I have on board, so safety is definitely a big deal to me as a pilot.”
Safety is important in most passengers’ minds when turbulence hits. Usually there is a reassuring announcement made by a mature male. Many passengers are surprised when they hear a female voice saying:  “Ladies and gentlemen this is your captain speaking. We are experiencing a bit of turbulence on our descent. Just sit back we’ll be landing shortly.”
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In 2013, Mbabazi became Rwanda’s first female commercial pilot. It was a dream that began at the age of four where she would see planes take off from Bujumbura airport, close to her home in Burundi. At the age of seven, she took her first flight on a family trip to the Unites States (US). It was love at first flight.
“I didn’t get to go into the cockpit but I knew this is where I belonged, back then they’d give kids back packs and I was just an excited child on the Virgin Atlantic.”
After high school, Mbabazi started training at Soroti Flight School, also known as East Africa Civil Aviation Academy, in Uganda where only two women made it through. She secured a scholarship from RwandAir to continue her commercial license training in the US.
“At Flight Safety Academy in the US, the number [of female students] was bigger. There were up to 20 female students from all over the world including the first female Saudi Arabian pilot, Hanadi Hindi among others from Asia, Europe and South America. There were about 10 female instructors and the chief pilot, Nancy Ritter, was a female too. But as many as we were we didn’t even make up 5 percent of the academy.”
Two and a half years later, Mbabazi made it.
“Making history was not my goal, achieving my goals is what I delight in, like I said, do what you love and people may appreciate it. After getting my commercial license I didn’t celebrate, I was looking forward to the next cockpit I’ll get into. This, for me, is my way of celebrating, flying!”
Mbabazi believes she is in the minority because of the belief that flying is a man’s job. She is delighted that she has paved the way for many dreamers in proving the critics wrong.
“I like to view my challenges as the reasons to celebrate having reached my goal. As a woman in a male dominated field, no doubt, you have to prove yourself, but hard work always pays off.”
Mbabazi is among many women in Rwanda who are the backbone of the country. Rwanda is going through great lengths to rebuild itself from the 1994 genocide, which left a dominant female population of an estimated 51%.
Laws have been set in place to provide more gender equality in the country. Women are allowed to own land and take more initiative in business and in politics. Rwanda has the highest number of women in parliament in the world and was the first country to have more than 50 female members of parliament.
And now there is a woman in the air.

Tag: Esther Mbabazi

FORBES AFRICA SOCIAL MEDIA

Feel The Fear And Fly Anyway

Love At First Flight