AVIATOR OF THE DAY-Adeola Ogunmola Sowemimo

Meet Adeola Ogunmola Sowemimo the first Nigerian female Pilot to be employed by Qatar Airways and first to fly the Boeing 767 dreamliner across the Atlantic.

Suffice to say that her news trended and broke the internet sometime ago. Her post on my LinkedIn page got more than a million views and was shared by many.

Now you will agree with me that, it is not a rare feat especially being a male dominated career. This is one woman that should not only be celebrated, but one to be very proud of.

I thought a lot of women would be inspired by her story, so we got talking recently.

Q: Please introduce yourself. Your name, where are you from and age.

I am Adeola Ogunmola Sowemimo, I am an indigene of Ogbomoso Oyo state. I am 29yrs old.

Q: What inspired you to venture into this once male dominated Career?

As a child growing up, I was fascinated by aircraft generally. Each time an aircraft flies pass, I said to myself that I will fly one someday. Flying is a passion I have and the fact that I wanted to make a difference in any field I find myself was my driving force.

Q: Give us a brief career history. What schools did you attend?

I finished my secondary education from First Baptist Model high school Kaduna afterwards I went to Ladoke Akintola university of Technology Ogbomoso to study transport management.Thereafter, I went to Nigerian college of Aviation Technology Zaria where I started my standard pilot course, then I proceeded to Sunrise aviation Inc USA to finish my flying course. In 2013, I was offered the position of a pilot with Medview Airline PLC where I worked for 5yrs and joined Qatar airways in October 2018.

Q: Which Aircrafts are you rated on?

I am rated on B737classic, B767,B777 and B787.

Q: How were you able to convince your parents that your dream was to become a pilot?

My parent had always been in support of my dream to fly right from the beginning so it didn’t take much effort in convincing them, although there were times they almost gave up on me but my passion and drive kept them going, of course today they are very proud of me.

Q: How many years have you spent in the industry?

I have spent about 9yrs in the industry but 6yrs of working in the industry.

Q: What is your lowest moment in your Career history?

My lowest moment in my career history was when I finished the B767 type rating with Medview Airline and I was kept back home, not rostered for training or any other duty for almost 10months. This really got at me because I am not a lazy person, I love my job so while I was home, I was a little depressed but I kept going with prayers and my loved one around me helped in killing the boredom.

Q: What were the challenges you had to face to becoming a pilot?

I had a lot of challenges starting from the environment where I grew and finance was not within my reach. My mother had to use her gratuity, pension and bank loan to pay for my flight training both in Nigeria and abroad as her effort to reach my state government to sponsor just as other state government was sponsoring thee indigenes proved abortive. i am glad I am here today against all odds.

Q: What is your most memorable moment?

My most memorable moment was when I received my joining date with Qatar Airways, that feeling is one I hold to my heart and I am not taking it for granted.

Q: Are you married? How have you been able to balance your work life and family?

Yes I am married. I have a supportive husband who is all out for my success and my passion and I think support is one thing amongst many things that’s important in marriage. So when I am not around he makes sure nothing suffers, with him in charge I have peace of mind that everything is going on well.

Q: What advise do you have for the aspiring young women out there?

I want every young woman out there to know that we can do and achieve anything we want if we have passion for it with patience, faith, focus, perseverance, determination and a lot of hard work. Sometimes, It may seem we won’t achieve what we want but know this, with prayers, faith and hard work, it will pay off at the end. Do not give up.
Keep pushing. Age, gender, marriage is not a barrier and I want us to know we can do and achieve more beyond the kitchen.

Q: Where do you see yourself in the next 5 years?

I see myself as one of those great women who will bring that change aviation industry in Nigeria needs, hopefully as one of the decision makers in the industry to take us far beyond where we are today, that will make the world aviation to reckon with us. With my exposure so far, Nigeria needs a change of aviation story and total rebranding to put us on the world’s aviation map.