While Zara Rutherford, the 19-year old Belgian British Aviator kept her record as the youngest female pilot to fly solo around the word and the first person to complete a circumnavigation in a micro light aircraft after a five month journey, Sri Lanka was made proud by a young aspiring girl in the aviation industry by being the youngest female pilot to have a Private Pilot License and the first youngest pilot to fly solo. Being an aviation enthusiast since she was a little girl, Sathnara Fernando voiced her thoughts to the Youth Observer, on her sensational achievement and her far-fetched experiences at such a young age.
Q: Tell us about yourself?
A: I’m a simple girl with loads of strength and self-motivation within me, willing to support, encourage and enhance leadership in personalities that need guidance as a teenager.
Q: How did you get interested in aviation?
A: It’s a childhood driven dream that I have carried for so many years inspiring myself to be a Combat aircraft pilot, driving me to achieve the position I proudly hold for myself today.
Q: Where did you receive your academic guidance from?
A: I was educated at the Holy Family Convent, Bambalapitiya until my Ordinary Levels. After my Ordinary Level Exams I decided to join Sakurai Aviation to pursue my childhood dream.
Q: Apart from aviation, are you interested in following any other subjects and why did you decide to pursue them?
A: Yes, I have always had the desire to learn about new things. I’m fascinated with Astronomy as I love the phenomenon of Space and the Solar System, and of course Cyber Security which is very innovative and constructive in helping the world’s safety with technology. In addition, I love to follow oriental dancing as well.
Q: Coming back to your childhood dream of being a pilot, do you need to be particularly skilled?
A: It is all enthusiasm, daringness and courage that takes to reach the skies for a pilot.
Q: What do you cherish the most about being a young pilot?
A: Being an enthusiastic young pilot wondering about the future, makes my learning procedure longer. It helps me in spending more time in the aviation industry motivating me day by day with all the experiences I have managed to get for myself, I trust the great saying ‘experiences are the best teacher’.
Q: Could you please recall the most challenging decision you made as a young pilot?
A: Yeah, the most challenging one would be the decision of stepping on to a career path of a highly confrontational and virtual learning industry.
Q: Being a believer of the fact that the ‘sky is the limit’ and dreaming of becoming a pilot since your childhood, I’m sure you would have something to share with us about your most memorable flying experience?
A: Needless to say, I would love to recall the memories. It was my first solo experience at the age of sixteen which made me euphoric in such an unforgettable way. It was a blown-out and a once in a life time experience for me to bare the title of the youngest pilot to go solo at such a young age.
Q: What would you describe as the greatest achievement of your career to date?
A: Being within the few pilots of the world to achieve the feat of becoming the youngest private pilot licensee for my motherland,Sri Lanka.
Q: Gaining vast experiences throughout the journey in the aviation industry, what do you think defines a professional young pilot?
A: What defines a professional young pilot is the self-discipline most importantly. Afterwards, it needs to be the passion to pay attention to the details which helps absorb the trendiest aviation knowledge for further self-development within the career.
Q: By choosing a career as a pilot in the aviation industry, you’ve proved yourself to be a young female game-changer in the world today. Could you please share the experiences of breaking certain myths/ stereotypes across your journey?
A: Women were always made limited in their choices of life and career, making the world a place full of male-dominant careers. I’m really proud of being able to break the stereotypes by joining a male-dominated career and for being able to break the age boundaries. It’s such a beautiful feeling to be an inspiration to all the other aspiring personalities out there whose careers and dreams have been limited due to such controversies.
Q: Any struggles you had to go through while achieving your dream?
A: Life had not been fair in any perspective. Experiencing both the good and bad in life, I have learnt to out fearlessly with the blessings and support of my mother and God Almighty.
Q: What is your greatest strength and weakness?
A: I would say that my greatest strength is the Almighty God that I believe in. And my greatest weakness is FOOD! I’m a huge food lover.
Q: What does success look like to you in this career?
A: The aviation industry is a master place for the entire interrelationship of the future. Success in such a career path is all about dedication and sacrifice. Personally, I have committed and sacrificed my time and worked hard to reach my goals and to make my career a successful one. Therefore, I believe that one needs to walk through a very innovative path of envision to achieve a certain success in the future in their mde of plan.
Q: How would your supervisors describe you?
A: I don’t have any supervisors. But my Captain and my instructors who trained me from day one had always believed in my strength and commitment even though I was a teenage girl trying to pick up what Aviation is as all about. They considered my ability to learn through my determination and enthusiasm, and also regarded me as a young girl who is ambitious and self- reliant / .
Q: Who or what is your biggest inspiration?
A: My biggest inspiration is the first lady Captain of Sri Lankan Airlines, Anusha Mohamed. She built the moral within me through a beautiful and powerful saying “FLY HIGH AND NEVER GIVE UP.”
Q: What is something that most people don’t know about you?
A: Even though I’m known to be the people’s person, I barely trust people since each one out there is different and sometimes you cannot make everyone think the way you do as it is really not justified on the other person’s point of view.
Q: Where do you see yourself in the future?
A: As an Airline pilot, I would rather say I see myself flying the big birds up there in the skies.
Q: What words of inspiration can you impart to all the aspiring youngsters?
A: Rather than following somebody else’s advice , I would say to believe in yourself . Believing in yourself makes you trust a certain process while making you think out of the box which eventually will help in planning and implementing development in everything you strive to do in life. Ultimately, THE SKY IS THE LIMIT!
Sathnara, wishing you the best for each step you will be taking in life to conquer your dreams. Keep shining. Keep inspiring.