Two aspiring female pilots from Papua New Guinea are about to achieve their dreams of becoming helicopter pilots. Gorethy Kaye from Jiwaka Province and Annette Gele from Milne Bay Province are both employees of Manolos Aviation Ltd who have been passionate about flying for as long as they can remember.
"I've always wanted to be a helicopter pilot," said Gorethy Kaye. "I was always curious of how a piece of metal put together can be able to fly in space without falling.”
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| Gorethy Kaye |
“I didn't have enough funds for flight school after I completed year 12, so I choose Aircraft Engineering, and after working with Manolos, I saw the need for pilots in our country so I decided to take up flying.”
Annette agreed. "I've always been fascinated by helicopters," she said. "I wanted to do something that challenged me to grow and learn new things. Becoming a pilot looked almost impossible at some stage, so I decided if it’s challenging then it’s worth trying.”
Both young women have been working hard to achieve their dreams. Three months ago, both Gorethy and Annette, have passed their Private Pilot Licence Helicopter theory exam, at the Helibiz Helicopter Training School in Cairns Australia.
Both are currently back in Cairns at the same School, to do their 50hrs minimum helicopter flying practical. With this they will be flying with instructors, and then they will need to do it solo. They will be completing this practical by December 2023 or January 2024.
They are both expected to receive their Australian private pilot's helicopter license within the next few months.
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| Annette Gele |
After they receive their licenses, both have plans to pursue further to get their commercial helicopter pilots licence which will take up to 12 to 18 months.
"This would enable us to fly helicopters for Manolos Aviation," said Gorethy. She is interested in both flying and fixing helicopters. She first joined Manolos Aviation as an apprentice engineer.
Annette plans to pursue a career as a medevac pilot, and wants to do medical evacuations for MAMA Foundation. Annette is the operations assistance for Manolos Aviation, assisting the operations controller.
Both women are excited about their future careers and are grateful for Manolos Aviation CEO Jurgen Ruh who sponsored them.
Ruh said the reason behind his support was for them to be able to fly medical evacuations for Mountain Area Medical Airlift (MAMA) Foundation.
“The money spent is the vessel towards possible success, the success is in the hands of the candidates and I have chosen the candidates carefully.”
Both Gorethy and Annette are role models for other young women who are interested in pursuing careers in aviation.
"I want to show other young women that they can achieve their dreams, no matter what they are," said Gorethy. "If you have a passion for something, go for it!"
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