A 23-year-old girl named Leona Serao is striving to make historical past as the primary Black girl pilot to fly throughout the globe solo. According to Yahoo News, Serao plans to embark on her objective this summer time.
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More Details About 23-Year-Old Leona Serao & Her Goal To Make History
According to the outlet, Serao will embark on her 3-month journey all over the world in August. She will depart her dwelling in New York City, and her flight will reportedly cowl 33 international locations spanning 4 continents.
The outlet reviews that there have been 142 solo flights carried out across the globe. However, out of these flights, solely 11 pilots have been girls. Furthermore, not one of the pilots so far have been Black.
Serao shared that her journey across the globe might be inspirational for others.
“The fact that I’m going to be the first one, means I’m going to be able to inspire other Black and other African people who want to join the aviation field.”
Yahoo News reviews that out of the 158,000 globally licensed pilots, solely 150 are Black girls — lower than 1% of the full determine.
The Background Of The 23-Year-Old & How She Persevered In A “Male-Dominated Field”
According to the outlet, Serao was born within the U.S. and raised within the Democratic Republic of Congo, a rustic in central Africa.
In the Democratic Republic of Congo, the outlet reviews that there are solely three licensed girls pilots.
“It is a challenge because it’s a male-dominated field and women didn’t really get the opportunity to be pilots before. We couldn’t even drive before [the 20th century]. And in the aviation industry, it stayed like that.”
However, Serao wouldn’t be hindered by the challenges. Instead, she returned to the US from Africa, accomplished a six-month intensive pilot research program, and paid $70,000 for flight college.
She turned a licensed pilot and has even arrange an on-line marketing campaign to cowl meals, gas, and lodging prices as she completes her worldwide journey.
On the marketing campaign web site, she lists her objectives for the journey.
“Inspire Future Generations, particularly girls, and black girls to
pursue their goals with out concern, Promote Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion globally,
Increase range and inclusion in aviation”
As Serao strives to achieve her objective, she additionally shares agency but inspiring recommendation for others.
“When you have a goal, you have to fight for it, no matter the situation.”