Refilwe Ledwaba (born 1980) is South Africa's first female, black helicopter pilot.
Refilwe Ledwaba | |
|---|---|
| Born | Lenyenye |
| Nationality | South African |
| Occupation | Pilot |
| Organization | Girl Fly in Africa Programme |
| Website | https://www.gfpafoundation.org/ |
Early life
editLedwaba grew up in a single-parent household in Lenyenye, Limpopo and is one of seven children.[1] Her mother worked as a teacher while bringing her children up by herself.[2] Her sisters all went to university.[3] She studied for a BSc at the University of Cape Town in Biochemistry with the intent to become a doctor.[4] However, whilst at university she flew for the first time, and decided to pursue a career in aviation.[5] She began working as cabin crew for South African Airways; while working for them she wrote to over two hundred aviation companies asking them for opportunities to train.[5] The South African Police Force offered to pay for her training and support her wish to become a commercial pilot, so she took them up on their job offer.[5]
Career
editLedwaba is the first black woman from South Africa to fly a helicopter and she is also the first black woman to fly for the South African Police Service (SAPS).[6] She received her pilot's wings on 11 January 2006, aged 26.[7] During her time in SAPS she flew over 2500 hours, recovered dead bodies from remote places and undertook solo reconnaissance missions.[3] She is a qualified fixed wing instructor.[8]
Ledwaba founded the non-profit organisation Girl Fly Africa in Programme to encourage young women into STEM careers, whatever their background.[6] Ledwaba organises the programme for this organisation every year: introducing women into the idea of flying as a career, as well as coding and robotics.[5] It organises lessons and training camps for young women in Botswana, Cameroon and South Africa.[9] As of 2019, over 100,000 young women had participated in GFAP.[10] She credits her upbringing, led by strong women in apartheid South Africa, as inspiration for her success.[1] In 2009 she set up the Southern African Women in Aviation and Aerospace Industry (SAWIA) group, to support women working in aviation.[3] Ledwaba has publicly called for the sector to employ more women, especially women of colour at strategic levels in aviation.[3]
In 2019, Ledwaba was a co-signatory on a letter addressed to The Guardian marking International Women's Day, calling for equality for African women.[11] In the same year she joined the U.S. Department of State's Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs' TechWomen programme as a mentee.[12] She also became an Obama Foundation Fellow in 2019.[13] Ledwaba is a Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Goalkeeper, a role she uses to advocate for women's rights in Africa.[2]
Awards
edit2012 - South African Youth Award (Entrepreneur)[8]
2012 - CEO Communication's Most Influential Women in Business and Government (Aviation)[8]
2014 - Young People in International Affairs [YPIA] (Top 35 Africans Under 35)[8]
2015 - CEO Communication's Most Influential Women in Business and Government (Aviation)[8]
References
edit- ^ a b "Meet South Africa's first black female police pilot, Refilwe Ledwaba". Face2Face Africa. 14 January 2020. Retrieved 6 March 2020.
- ^ a b Jo Munnik; Aisha Salaudeen (13 January 2020). "This South African pilot is on a mission to change the face of aviation in Africa". CNN. Retrieved 6 March 2020.
- ^ a b c d admin (24 December 2018). "IN PICTURES | South Africa's first black female helicopter pilot for SAPS uplifts young women". Forbes Africa. Retrieved 6 March 2020.
- ^ "Refile Ledwaba".
- ^ a b c d Ford, Dhruti Shah and Tamasin (25 September 2018). "The female pilot teaching African women to fly". BBC News. Retrieved 6 March 2020.
- ^ a b "Refilwe Ledwaba". OKAYAFRICA's 100 WOMEN. Retrieved 6 March 2020.
- ^ Servamus. SARP-Uitgevers. 2006.
- ^ a b c d e "Refilwe Ledwaba". Inspiring Fifty: South Africa. Retrieved 6 March 2020.
- ^ "South Africa's first black female helicopter pilot helps girls reach new heights in the aviation and aerospace industry — Assembly | Malala Fund". Assembly. January 2020. Retrieved 6 March 2020.
- ^ Kearns, Suzanne K.; Mavin, Timothy J.; Hodge, Steven (8 November 2019). Engaging the next generation of aviation professionals (First ed.). London. ISBN 978-0-429-28773-2. OCLC 1128095813.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) - ^ Letters (8 March 2019). "Equality for African women | Letters". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 6 March 2020.
- ^ "Refilwe Ledwaba". TechWomen. Retrieved 6 March 2020.
- ^ "Leaders: Africa 2019". Obama Foundation. Retrieved 6 March 2020.