There was excitement at Kamuzu International Airport (Kia) Thursday when the all-women piloted Malawian Airline Bombardier Q-400 landed.
The plane flew from Chileka International Airport to Tanzania’s capital Dar-es-Salaam with a stopover at Kia where there was a special reception marking Malawi’s first ever all-women piloted plane.
Yolanda Kaunda Mdala was in charge of the plane co-piloted by Lusekelo Mwenifumbo and Saba Solomoni as the cabin engineer.
First Lady Gertrude Mutharika who was at the airport commended Kaunda for making history and demonstrating that women are capable.
“You have set the pace in closing the gender gap in the aviation industry in Malawi. You have demonstrated that women can. You have demolished all boundaries that kept us confined in certain narrow spaces for far too long. This all-women piloted flight has made history for Malawian women as we have now pushed the frontiers way beyond imagination,” she said.
In his remarks Malawi Airlines Chief Executive Officer, Ahadu Simachew said his company has respect for women and supports gender equality.
“We believe women are as capable to excel in fields that are widely dominated by men, only if given a chance. This is why we have over the years made deliberate efforts to increase diversity in the cockpit by training more women pilots so as to inspire more girls to consider taking up careers in aviation,” he said.
The aviation sector has been dominated by men since the first airplane took to the skies in 1903.
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