A Pilot & a PR strategist
My journey as a pilot came to reality when I met Capt. Mary Kai, a 737 former KQ Captain, who is also a member of WAI Kenya.
I met Capt. Mary while doing a PR job for a business forum & when I registered her details, I found out that she was a senior pilot for Kenya Airways.
That was way back but to cut the long story short she found out that I couldnāt afford to pay for my flying and she decided to help me by registering me in WAI with the aim of applying for a scholarship. As a WAI member in Kenya Chapter, I volunteered to be the social media strategist and created and managed all their social media platforms (to date š).
I applied for scholarships but sadly Didnāt get any however I met so many pilots who together with Captain Mary started mentoring me. Notably was Capt. Koki, 787 KQ Captain & my Capt. Rye Thompson, 747 Pilot of United Airlines.
The dream became much more real when I met Rye Thompson who took a lot of of his time to help me actualize it. Rye Thompson enrolled me at FTC, Wilson Airport, paid for my ground school and bought me the entire pilot kit & from there the rest is history. Got a job as marketing manager for Magna Kenya & used most of my earnings to pay for my flying. I later joined Select Aviation in Canada then Flyby in Spain.
PS: I work for Flyby as their admissions officer in Africa. If you want to get your EASA ATPL you can write to me via frank.nyawa@flybyschool.com / +254706283428
Iām currently a commercial pilot with my PR degree. Last year my instructor from FTC, Capt. Charles Kariuki & I decided to start a charter company/training place for aspiring pilots who canāt afford flying the conventional way. Itās still in the early stages and we have students as well. We are located at Wilson Airport, next to Nairobi Flying Services. Watch out for Ace Aviation.
Lastly I would like thank Capt. Mary Kai for her mentorship and most importantly enrolling me to WAI where I met Capt. Rye Thompson who is one of more of a brother and family to me. Not forgetting Capt. Koki and Loise who encouraged me during my early stages as a pilot student. Letās not forget the president of WAI Kenya Chapter, Unah Getrude, who always gave me a listening ear throughout my student life as a pilot & was always ready to network me with like-minded pilots.