An 18-year-old African-American woman from Jamaica, New York, Ariel Messam, has recently become the youngest woman of colour to be a certified private pilot in her state.
Ariel attended and graduated from Aviation Career & Technical Education High School in Queens, New York, from 2018 to 2022. She earned her high school diploma and her certification as an aircraft powerplant technician, all while playing varsity basketball.
She started working as a flight simulation instructor in 2022 at Level Up and Take Off, a 501(c)3) organisation based in New York City that supports equity, diversity, and inclusion in aviation, real estate, and financial management. This program provides inner-city youth with opportunities to gain practical hands-on experience within each industry.
She primarily flies out of Republic Airport in Farmingdale, New York, and recently announced in a Facebook post that she had finally achieved her goal of becoming the youngest Black woman to be a certified private pilot in New York.
Great. Keep it up.