ABU DHABI // Fatima Al Mansoori is one of the nation’s pioneering female aviators.
The fourth-year student on Abu Dhabi University’s aviation course is also an air force pilot and the first Emirati woman to fly a Lockheed C-130 Hercules turboprop military transport aircraft.
Her credentials put her in a category of elite female pilots that includes her colleague Mariam Al Mansouri, the UAE’s first female fighter pilot.
Ms Al Mansoori’s journey began in 1995 when she joined a military school at the age of 13, then received her pilot’s licence a decade later while attending Emirates’ flight school.
Around that time, she first laid eyes on the C-130 while working for a private flight operator.
“The C-130 was passing by all the time and I told them ‘I am going to fly this airplane,” she said.
After being inspired and receiving support from Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces, Ms Al Mansoori joined Khalifa bin Zayed Air College, graduating in 2008.
“There were no girls in the air force, so I became the first cadet pilot,” she said.
Now, at the age of 34, she finds herself in the cockpit as co-pilot of a C-130, where she has flown missions that include shipping medical supplies to countries such as Somalia and Pakistan.
Even as a co-pilot, she decided that she still needed a formal university education, so she signed up for Abu Dhabi University’s aviation programme.
While admitting that there had been challenges, Ms Al Mansoori said she found flying the C-130 manageable.
“It makes no difference if the vehicle is being flown by a male or a female,” she said. Because you’re not using your muscles, you’re using your brain.”
With regards to her being one of the few females in the male-dominated Armed Forces, she said: “You need to be in the group, on the squadron, with the people around you, conserving the culture and the distance between the two genders,” she said. “There is respect and support for us all the way.”
Ms Al Mansoori needs 30 more hours of flying to become a C-130 captain. As for long-term plans, she said she wants to continue her studies and eventually complete a doctorate. From there, she plans to take her career beyond the stratosphere and become the UAE’s first astronaut.
“She will get there, trust me,” said Laurie Earl, ADU’s interim aviation programme director.
“Aviation can take me around the world,” Ms Al Mansoori said.
esamoglou@thenational.ae
Armies of Sand
By Kenneth Pollack (Oxford University Press)
Conflict, drought, famine
Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine.
Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.
Band Aid
Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts.
With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians.
Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved.
Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world.
The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.
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Fatima Al Darmaki is an Emirati widow with three children
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- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
Tips to stay safe during hot weather
- Stay hydrated: Drink plenty of fluids, especially water. Avoid alcohol and caffeine, which can increase dehydration.
- Seek cool environments: Use air conditioning, fans, or visit community spaces with climate control.
- Limit outdoor activities: Avoid strenuous activity during peak heat. If outside, seek shade and wear a wide-brimmed hat.
- Dress appropriately: Wear lightweight, loose and light-coloured clothing to facilitate heat loss.
- Check on vulnerable people: Regularly check in on elderly neighbours, young children and those with health conditions.
- Home adaptations: Use blinds or curtains to block sunlight, avoid using ovens or stoves, and ventilate living spaces during cooler hours.
- Recognise heat illness: Learn the signs of heat exhaustion and heat stroke (dizziness, confusion, rapid pulse, nausea), and seek medical attention if symptoms occur.
