Meet Shaesta Waiz – the first civilian female pilot from Afghanistan who seeks to empower the next generation around the globe in Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) as she makes a historic solo flight around the world. Along the route, Waiz will team with inspiring women, and together they’ll host outreach events focused on careers in STEM fields (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics).
About A Lady Pilot
Shaesta's inspiration to fly around the world- Geraldine "Jerrie" Mock- the first woman who flew solo around the world in 1964.
Shaesta was born in Afghanistan in a refugee camp. In 1987 her family travelled from to America in 1987 to escape the Soviet-Afghan War. She grew up with her parents and five sisters in Richmond, California in an underprivileged school district.
“I believed my future consisted of getting married at a young age and starting a big family. It wasn’t until I found aviation that I started thinking about having a career and going to college,” says Shaesta.
At 28, Waiz has already become the first certified civilian female pilot from Afghanistan. Her next challenge is to become the youngest female pilot to fly around the world.
“I want to inspire the next generation of female aviation professionals,” she says.
About Route Around the World
Shaesta recently became a RocketRoute member:
“RocketRoute will be a great resource during my upcoming flight around the world. The app allows me to plan, review and file my international flight plans within minutes through my iPad. The additional features such as weather, the AutoRoute, flight log, approach plates and live filing will make the single pilot operations of this global trip very convenient for me.”
We hope our software will be more than useful for planning this amazing route.
The Dreams Soar route includes approximately 28 stops on five continents. Each stop is strategically selected based on the need for STEM outreach. Inspiring women who are in the STEM field will be featured in these events, promoting STEM education around the world. The total distance for the journey is 24,805 nautical miles.
The aircraft Shaesta is planning to fly is 2001 Beechcraft Bonanza A36, Registration number N364ER.
Launch date for Spring 2017 will be known soon.
| From | To | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| KDAB Daytona Beach, Florida | KCMH Columbus, Ohio | 655 nm |
| KCMH Columbus, Ohio | CYUL Montréal, Canada | 521 nm |
| CYUL Montréal, Canada | CYYT St. Johns, Canada | 876 nm |
| CYYT St. Johns, Canada | LPAZ Santa Maria, Portugal | 1,374 nm |
| LPAZ Santa Maria, Portugal | LECU Madrid, Spain | 1,023 nm |
| LECU Madrid, Spain | EGTF Fairoaks, England | 673 nm |
| EGTF Fairoaks, England | LIRA Rome, Italy | 789 nm |
| LIRA Rome, Italy | HECA Cairo, Egypt | 1,150 nm |
| HECA Cairo, Egypt | OMDW Al Maktoum- Dubai, UAE | 1303 nm |
| OMDW Al Maktoum- Dubai, UAE | VABB Mumbai, India | 1045 nm |
| VABB Mumbai, India | VECC Kolkata (Calcutta), India | 901 nm |
| VECC Kolkata (Calcutta), India | VTBD Bangkok, Thailand | 868 nm |
| VTBD Bangkok, Thailand | WSSL Singapore Seletar, Singapore | 772 nm |
| WSSL Singapore Seletar, Singapore | WIHH Jakarta, Indonesia | 494 nm |
| WIHH Jakarta, Indonesia | YPDN Darwin, Australia | 1,469 nm |
| YPDN Darwin, Australia | YBCS Cairns, Australia | 906 nm |
| YBCS Cairns, Australia | NFFN Nadi, Fiji | 1,818 nm |
| NFFN Nadi, Fiji | NSTU Pago Pago, American Samoa | 715 nm |
| NSTU Pago Pago, American Samoa | PLCH Christmas Island, Kiribati | 1,258 nm |
| PLCH Christmas Island, Kiribati | PHKO Kona, Hawaii | 1,064 nm |
| PHKO Kona, Hawaii | PHTO Hilo, Hawaii | 57 nm |
| PHTO Hilo, Hawaii | KSEE El Cajon, California | 2,184 nm |
| KSEE El Cajon, California | KDVT Phoenix, Arizona | 252 nm |
| KDVT Phoenix, Arizona | KBEC Wichita, Kansas | 763 nm |
| KBEC Wichita, Kansas | KGRR Grand Rapids, Michigan | 619 nm |
| KGRR Grand Rapids, Michigan | KLUK Cincinnati, Ohio | 232 nm |
| KLUK Cincinnati, Ohio | KDCA Washington, D.C. | 346 nm |
| KDCA Washington, D.C. | KPDK Atlanta, Georgia (Peachtree) | 461 nm |
| KPDK Atlanta, Georgia (Peachtree) | KBFM Mobile, Alabama | 273 nm |
| KBFM Mobile, Alabama | KDAB Daytona Beach, Florida | 376 nm |
| Total: | 25,237 nm |
*Please note, the route is subject to change due to weather and/or maintenance delays. Outreach events are planned in Kabul, Afghanistan but the Bonanza will not be flown into country due to the aircraft’s performance capabilities. The following cities, KLUK and KPDK are for fuel/tech stops.
Few interesting facts
- There are only about 450 female airline captains worldwide. All could be seated on a single Airbus A380. (Source: The International Society of Women Airline Pilots)
- Only 6% General Aviation pilots in U.S. are women. (Source: Federal Aviation Administration)
- Only 0.6% airline pilots worldwide are women. (Source: Boeing and The International Society of Women Airline Pilots)
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