Latest news with #femalePilot
Arab News
09-07-2025
- General
- Arab News
How a Muslim woman from Sulu made history as a Philippine Air Force pilot
CLARK AIR BASE, PAMPANGA: In 1998, when she sat in the cockpit for the first time, Rosemawattee Remo was not just fulfilling her dream — she was also making history by becoming the first female Muslim pilot in the Philippine Air Force. Born and raised in Sulu, in the predominantly Muslim southern Philippines, Remo grew up in a traditional household where male and female roles were clearly defined. Her decision to join the military, travel some 1,000 km away from home and fly aircraft was not initially welcomed. 'My father was a (school) principal then and he wanted me to follow in his footsteps,' she told Arab News. 'The day before my departure to Manila, I told him that I had a scheduled flight and he told me: 'You're way ahead of your brothers ... we're still alive and you're already making decisions on your own.'' But she did not feel discouraged: 'Those words keep ringing in my ears every time I'm at my lowest,' she said. '(They remind me) that I can't give up.' Holding the rank of colonel and currently serving as deputy wing commander of the PAF's 410th Maintenance Wing, Remo started her military career in 1992 with the Women's Auxiliary Corps under the Armed Forces. A year later, she enrolled in the Officer Candidate School. Her graduation in 1994 coincided with the implementation of a landmark law that for the first time allowed women to hold combat and leadership roles in the army, navy, air force and police — positions previously exclusively for men. 'We were nearing our graduation. We were told to draw lots and, fortunately, I took the Philippine Air Force,' Remo said. Four years later, she started her training as a pilot and soon specialized in helicopter rescue missions. Assigned to the PAF 505th Search and Rescue Group, she flew Bell 205 and Huey helicopters for disaster response and served as a co-pilot aboard a larger Sikorsky or Black Hawk for military transport and relief missions. Married to a fellow PAF pilot, she has three children and has always found ways to balance her military service with motherhood — and even make them complement each other. In the aftermath of deadly Typhoon Frank in 2008, when she flew relief operations in Central Mindanao in conditions suitable for flight, she had two major motivations that kept her going: the distressed people on the ground suddenly filling with hope as they heard the chugging sound of helicopter blades, and her own kids waiting for her at home. 'I always brought them along with me in the deployment area, so every time I got out of the aircraft I saw my kids waiting for me,' she said. 'I needed to go back home right after the mission ... I had to do everything to survive.' Col. Remo has flown more than 2,000 hours on critical missions — search and rescue, relief, rehabilitation. She also took part in skydiving exhibitions between 1999 and 2014. The first Filipino Muslim woman in such a role, she tries not to see her achievements as anything extraordinary. 'I always keep my feet grounded,' she said. 'If you have a dream, then you have to persevere and find ways to attain (it).'
Malay Mail
25-06-2025
- Malay Mail
Female pilot allegedly loses RM194,970 in Haj package scam, Nilai police investigating
SEREMBAN, June 24 — A female pilot lodged a police report today claiming she was cheated in a Haj package deal, resulting in a loss of RM194,970. Nilai police chief Supt Abdul Malik Hasim said the victim, in her 30s, filed the report at the Nilai police station at 11.23 am, saying that she had dealt with an individual from an Umrah travel agency who offered the Haj package on Jan 14. 'The victim, who works for a local airline, made several transfers totaling RM194,970 to the agency's account as full payment for the package. 'However, she realised she had been scammed on March 15 after finding out that the agency was no longer in operation and she would not be able to perform the Haj as promised,' he said in a statement today. Abdul Malik said the case is being investigated under Section 420 of the Penal Code, and efforts to trace the suspect are underway. — Bernama
Daily Mail
23-05-2025
- General
- Daily Mail
Terrifying new revelation about female Frontier pilot's landing from hell that left passengers petrified
A Frontier plane could have exploded in a fireball after a female pilot landed so hard one of the jet's wheels snapped off and was sucked into its engine. Investigators with the National Transportation Safety Board released the images as a new report detailed how one of the plane's wheels came off and was sucked into the engine. The horrifying near-miss came on April 15 as the Frontier flight landed in Puerto Rico from Orlando, and footage from inside the jet showed its 228 passengers screaming in terror after the plane touched down on the tarmac. According to the new report, the crew heard a loud bang from under the fuselage as the plane's monitor warned the captain of an engine failure when they made their initial descent. This led the crew to abort their landing and perform several 'go-arounds', with air traffic control also reporting an engine fire. The report noted the crew said they only had an engine failure, however footage from inside the plane showed a fire on the wing. The plane was being flown by a female co-pilot at the time with a male captain monitoring her, however he took over the controls as he decided the 'aircraft was too high, so she corrected with a shallow descent and then a gradual flare.' The report noted that the aircraft was in a 'nose down' position and was in a 'takeoff/ go-around setting' when it first touched down, and it recorded a vertical acceleration of 2.2G's - far higher than the 1.8G's allowed for the Frontier aircraft. The pilot went ahead with the landing, with footage from terrified passengers on board showing people screaming and praying as they noticed the flames from the plane before it landed with an aggressive thud. The horrifying near-miss came on April 15 as the Frontier flight landed in Puerto Rico from Orlando, and footage from inside the jet showed its 228 passengers screaming and praying as an apparent fire was seen on the wing As the pilot took over and performed the landing, he decided to pass by air traffic control to see if controllers could see if the plane's landing gear was intact and appeared to be down, which a controller confirmed it was. Once they landed, investigators found that the left wheel and tire on the nose landing gear had been severed from its axle, which led 'metal fragments' to be sucked into the left engine. According to the NTSB report, 'damage was found on the engine's inlet cowl liner, thrust reverser, fan blades, and guide vanes' as a result of the wheel and tire being destroyed in the landing. It remains unclear if the hard landing was the result of pilot error or an as-yet undisclosed technical or external issue that was beyond the pilot's control. A full report with a conclusion on what caused the incident will be released at a later date. Data from the preliminary probe showed the plane touched down with a 'maximum recorded vertical acceleration' far higher than the landing threshold on the Frontier aircraft. There were no reported injuries as a result of the hard landing. Flight tracking company FlightAware showed that the aircraft circled the airport a total of four times before it made its successful landing attempt. Luis Irizarry, who has investigated other aviation accidents, told WAPA television that the aircraft was not stable on its first approach. 'The plane was coming in, but it was in an unstable pattern. It wasn't stabilized for landing,' Izarrry said at the time. 'While trying to land, it hit the runway with its nose wheel.' NTSB investigators have not fully established the cause of the hard landing, however expert Irizarry speculated that the pilot may not have had control of the aircraft as they made their descent. 'When the nose wheel hit the plane, the pilot grabbed it and gave it power to turn around. At that time, they shut down the left engine to avoid further damage and the possibility of it catching fire. They turned around and landed,' he said. 'The information we have is that the person flying was the copilot, and the copilot was a new pilot for the airline. When I say new, I mean a young pilot, with a thousand or so flight hours,' he said. 'Perhaps it was their first flight, flying solo and not with a supervisor or a trainer, and that's the situation we fear. That's why the plane wasn't stable because they didn't have it under control.' A video recorded by Melanie González Wharton, who was on the flight with her husband and their two children, showed sparks coming out of the airplane's left engine. Irizarry's claim that the novice co-pilot was in control of the airplane seemingly confirmed González Wharton's initial concern. 'Oh my God, I knew it!!! Finally, the answer I wanted to hear,' she wrote on her Facebook page at the time. 'I said the same thing to Edwin [her husband], 'I have a feeling it was a trainee pilot who didn't know how to land properly.' They almost killed us.' 'It was a horrible experience,' she added to El Nuevo Día. 'While we were on the plane going around the island, we were crying, the children were screaming, people were praying, singing loudly,' she said. 'It was an unforgettable experience. It was horrible.' Frontier Airlines said in a statement that the plane experienced a 'hard landing upon arrival,' but it landed safely and there were no injuries. It noted further that the incident is under investigation.
Yahoo
18-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
She dreamed of the sky since age 10: story of Ukraine's only female combat pilot
Lieutenant Kateryna is the only female combat pilot in the Ukrainian defence forces, serving at a frontline helicopter base alongside dozens of male colleagues. In 2023, she joined the 18th Army Aviation Brigade. Since then, she has completed over 30 combat missions aboard a Mi-8 helicopter. Source: The New York Times Details: Kateryna says her desire to fly began in childhood when she first visited an airbase where her father served as an officer. After her first flight on a Mi-8 helicopter at the age of 10, she decided she wanted to become a pilot. "It was so loud and so scary, but I felt that I wanted to fly it," she said. At the age of 16, Kateryna enrolled in the Ivan Kozhedub Kharkiv National Air Force University, where she was the only female student. She remembers a lecturer once asking her: "What are you doing here? This is not for girls. You will not make it". A female instructor working with helicopter simulators gave her the motivation to keep going. "She told me not to listen to anyone, and I thought, if she can fly, why can't I?" Kateryna said. In 2023, she joined the 18th Army Aviation Brigade and began flying combat missions in September 2024. Since then, she has completed more than 30 sorties as co-pilot and navigator aboard a Soviet-designed heavy Mi-8 helicopter. "In flight, I love everything," she said. Journalists observed Kateryna as she prepared for a mission. She braids her hair tightly into two plaits so it doesn't get in the way, puts on the male military uniform – since there is no other option – and grabs her tablet used for navigation before stepping outside. There, she is met by her all-male crew. Together, they discuss the flight route she has prepared – this time, the mission involves three helicopters. The crews then walk to their helicopters, hidden in the forest to avoid Russian attacks. Kateryna dons her helmet, gets comfortable in her seat and takes off with her commander. Two helicopters tasked with striking Russian targets fly ahead. Behind them follows a third helicopter, which serves as a kind of relay radio station. It is this last aircraft that Kateryna pilots. Although it stays behind the others, it is often exposed to greater danger due to flying at a higher altitude. "I never stress during the flight," she said. "All the heavy thoughts can come before or after. During the flight, my mind is clear." "I fly and look over my country, thinking how beautiful it is, and then, when we enter the frontline area and I see how everything is destroyed – burned and bombed – the villages, towns, homes and factories, I think: how did we get here in the 21st century?" she reflected. After completing the mission, the three helicopters returned to their forest clearing. "Once I hear on the radio that we hit the target – like today – I know the job is done," Kateryna said after she returned. "I feel like, 'phew, great, we completed our task'." She rarely sees her family but dreams of taking her younger sister for a flight once the war ends. After missions, Kateryna finds time to relax by watching movies with fellow soldiers. She has learned to ignore sexist comments and she finds encouragement in the respect shown by other pilots and the trust commanders place in her abilities. "Possibly, I ruined the stereotype," Kateryna said. However, she admitted that overcoming prejudice from male commanders and soldiers remains a challenge. Female service members, she noted, are often marginalised in the military and are given fewer assignments than their male counterparts. "It's like that in any profession when you're a woman – not just in the army," Kateryna added. Background: Earlier, we reported on how former teacher Nataliia Hrabarchuk shot down a Russian cruise missile with a portable air defence system during a large-scale attack. The Ministry of Defence later honoured her and her fellow defenders with awards. Read more: Natasha, you got it! The former kindergarten teacher who downed a Russian missile Support Ukrainska Pravda on Patreon!
