On 15th Oct. 2019, Kafayat Sanni broke an undaunting record as she was crowned the first female pilot fighter in Nigeria. This became the first in the history of the 55year-old Nigerian Air Force.
Prior to this time, as the manner of studying is, she had graduated as the overall best pilot at the Nigerian Air Force 401 Flying Training School, Kaduna State, Nigeria in 2017. The basis on which she was sent to the United States of America to train at the Aviation Leadership Programme.
She had returned only to be welcomed with her decoration as she had won the trophy of flying Alpha jets which made her become the first female fighter pilot.
Kafayat speaking on how she felt on the decoration said, “It is a privilege for me to be winged as the first female fighter pilot in the Nigerian Air Force. My appreciation first goes to the Almighty God for making this possible for me. It also goes to the Chief of the Air Staff for giving me the opportunity and for making this possible.”
The information has it that the decorated, Kafayat Sanni alongside 12 other counterparts will soon be deployed to the North to join on-going fighters to combat the Boko Haram insurgency.
Kafayat speaking on what her response will be if the information happens to be truly said, “It will motivate me of course. There are other pilots there on the fronts and they are playing their part. They have been doing their best. So I am also just going to join my male counterparts in the insurgency fight and every other thing that have been going on in our country. So I am just going to get there and play my part.”
In a concluding statement, she left a charge to youngsters, “I was just lucky to be chosen. It was also my choice. It was what I wanted to do. And I felt that everyone is not supposed to fold their arms and watch what is happening in our country. Everyone could always play their part. So I did not think there was any reason for me to think that it is not possible for me to actually fly the jet because there was no female that ever flew the jet. I believe I could achieve it and I did. The advice I want to emphasise to them is that they should never say no to opportunities. They should always strive to be the best and put in their efforts. They should never look at anything that seems to want to overpower or overshadow them. For me, you can always attempt things and if they do not work out well; fine. But at every point in time, you just need to put in your best.”
