Africa’s first female Dreamliner Captain Irene Koki Mutungi has been inducted into the Aviators Hall of fame.
She received the award during the Aviator Africa Conference in Johannesburg, South Africa. Taking to her Twitter account, Irene expressed her excitement after receiving the award.
“I am extremely honored and humbled to be inducted into the Aviators Africa Hall of Fame. After working in the aviation industry for over 25 years, I am earnestly grateful for this recognition.”
This year’s conference themed ‘the Sustainability of African Aviation’ sought to promote the development and sustainability of African Aviation and its allied stakeholders.
Read: Kenya Airways Relaunches Daily Direct Flights To New York
In 2004, she became the first African woman to be certified to fly the Boeing 737 as a commercial pilot. She eventually became certified to fly the Boeing 767. In 2014 Kenya Airways promoted her to Captain of the B787.
Irene made history after becoming the first woman on the African continent to be certified as a Captain of the Boeing 787 “Dreamliner”.
She joins a select group of outstanding aviators who have significantly advanced the industry in Africa with this recognition. Koki was the only female pilot for six years after being employed as KQ’s first female pilot in 1995.
Additionally, in 2018, she piloted KQ’s non-stop inaugural flight to New York, USA, in which former President Uhuru Kenyatta was onboard.
Read: Boeing Faces Another USD 6 Billion Suit Over Indonesia, Ethiopia Plane Crashes
Martin Gitonga, the head of network planning at KQ, also received the coveted Sustainability award, making him one of just two Kenyans honoured at the event.
Their employer, Kenya Airways, was equally pleased with the two and honoured them for their dedication to making KQ the pride of Africa through their exceptional work as posted by Kenya Airways on their social media pages.
“Congratulations Captain Irene Koki Mutungi and Martin Gitonga, KQ Head of Network Planning for the wins during the Aviator Africa Conference and Tower Awards held in Johannesburg, South Africa. Captain Koki was inducted into the Hall of Fame while Martin won the Sustainability Award. The Pride of Africa is proud to have you as part of the team and is grateful to the Awards for recognizing your incredible contribution to the aviation of Africa,” read the statement.
The Tower Awards often referred to as the Aviators Africa Award was created to recognize excellence and sustainability in African aviation.
Tower Awards has been recognized as an indigenous African award that honours companies and individuals who have made a difference in the growth of African aviation.
Email your news TIPS to editor@thesharpdaily.com
