After Enrolling At The Air Force, She Was Told That She Was Too Short To Fly, But Fought For Her Dreams, Now A Successful Pilot & The Founder Of African College Of Aviation, Which Trains Students, Meet Asnath Mahapa

From a curious village girl to a trailblazing Commercial Pilot.

Meet – Asnath Mahapa, South Africa’s first black female Commercial Pilot and first South African black woman to acquire an Airline Transport Pilots Licence (ATPL).

She fell in love with the idea of flying at the tender age of 13. Curiosity about why aircraft manage to stay in the air is what inspired her to consider this career.

She started her pilot training at G&L Aviation in Polokwane, South Africa and then moved to Progress Flight Academy where she obtained a Private Pilots Licence. She completed her Commercial Pilots Licence on the 8th of October 1999.

Asnath Mahapa joined the South African Airforce in 2001 until December 2002. She flew for the United Nations World Food and The Red Cross from May 2003 until January 2007. During this period she operated mainly in Central and West Africa countries, she also flew for DHL in the Southern African Region.

She joined South African Express in July 2007 and worked there until January 2010.

In February 2010, she joined South African Airways where she became a Senior First Officer on the Airbus A340.

In 2012, Asnath Mahapa established the African College of Aviation, which trains and inspires the next generation of Pilots.

“The dream of becoming a pilot was very far-fetched when I was a young girl. I didn’t know anyone who was a pilot when I was growing up. It was when I went to the boarding school where I would spend many hours in town where I started getting magazines about flying. It is here where I got my first knowledge about flying.”

“When I tried enrolling at the Air Force, I was told I was too short to fly. But I fought for my dream and others did too, which I’m very grateful for. I ended up changing the history in the Air Force. I was the first to get in with my height.

“When I got into the Air Force, after fighting this battle of bringing down the height (requirement), I was told that they didn’t recognise my qualifications, so I had to start from scratch again and do my qualifications again.”

“When I left the Air Force and wanted to start flying elsewhere, I was told that I can’t fly, and haven’t reached the standard, so I was grounded immediately.”

“I’ve been knocked down constantly, but I keep going. Today I am where I am because of my persistence,” said Asnath Mahapa.

Source: Women Power Africa

Email: elora.akpotosevbe@yahoo.com