ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - At just 24 years old, Heshu Haval, a Kurdish-British young woman, has achieved her lifelong dream of becoming a commercial airline pilot, flying across 45 countries during her first year as a Boeing 737 pilot.
Born and raised in the United Kingdom, Heshu now holds 400 flight hours under her belt, as a commercial airplane pilot with Ryanair, one of Europe's largest airlines.
“As a Kurdish girl, I feel immensely proud that I have become a pilot,” she told Rudaw in an interview. “Whenever someone at the airport asks about my background, I proudly tell them I’m Kurdish. They are often surprised, as they’ve never heard of Kurdish pilots working in the UK before.”
Inspiration takes flight
Heshu's passion for aviation was sparked at age 18, when a young female pilot visited her school. "She was 25 years old and the youngest female pilot in the UK. When I saw her, my desire to become a pilot grew stronger.”
Determined to pursue her dream, she began researching aviation online. “My father was very supportive, and although my mother was sometimes afraid and hesitant, they were both always by my side."
In late 2021, Heshu began her pilot training at the FTA Global Academy in Brighton, UK, where she studied for three years. She later continued her training at FlyBy Aviation Academy at Spain’s Burgos International Airport for six months, where she earned her license.
"They asked me to stay and become an instructor, but my parents wanted me to become a commercial airline pilot, so I returned to the UK," she said.
Upon her return, Heshu secured a position with Ryanair and after three months of training on flying the large Boeing aircraft, she became a pilot of the Boeing 737-800 and 737-8200, which can carry up to 200 passengers.
Overcoming challenges
Heshu's journey was far from easy. When her flight school in the UK went bankrupt, she was forced to relocate to Spain to complete her training without her family.
"With the encouragement and support of my parents, I stayed focused on my goal of becoming an airline pilot and dedicated myself to completing the training as quickly as possible," she said, adding that in the end, “I successfully finished all my remaining training and returned home within six months."
Brexit also added a major hurdle. Of note, Brexit refers to the UK's withdrawal from the European Union, following a June 2016 referendum that saw 52 percent of British voters voted in support of the move.
Heshu said that the UK leaving the EU meant that the UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) would no longer recognize European theoretical exam qualifications.
"For pilots like me, this meant that in order to hold both UK and [European Union Aviation Safety Agency] EASA licenses, we would need to complete all 14 theoretical exams twice - once under the UK CAA and another time under EASA.” Despite this setback doubling her workload, Heshu persevered and completed all 28 theoretical exams.
Breaking barriers
Heshu further highlighted the difficulty of securing employment after training. "Even after you finish the training and have all the qualifications, it is not that easy to actually secure a job as an airline pilot,” she explained. "That's why I considered the job offer of being a flight instructor at my old school in Spain, because I thought I might struggle like many others else I know."
Luckily, however she was handed the opportunity at Ryanair. “I know a lot of people who have finished their training and they have been struggling to find a flying job for years now with any airline," Heshu noted, adding, "I worked extremely hard and my grades are proof of this. I also showed extensive knowledge during my employment interview; that is what got me the job in the end."
When asked about the skills needed to become an aircraft pilot, Heshu emphasized, "You must be able to make decisions in the most difficult circumstances. You must also have complete self-confidence and set aside your fears. If you are fearful, you’re putting at risk the lives of all the passengers who have entrusted you with their lives on the journey."
The most important thing she concluded is that one “must be able to work under immense pressure without letting it get to you. You must remain calm, composed and in control in all situations and at all times,” she stressed.
Kurdish heritage
Although born in London in 2000, Heshu speaks, reads, and writes Kurdish fluently. "I have a brother and a sister. From childhood, my parents did not allow me and my siblings to speak English at home. They always insisted and encouraged us to speak in our native Kurdish tongue," she said.
Heshu further said that she “used to attend holy Quran lessons at the local mosque when I was younger. That is how I came to learn to write in Kurdish as well."
Heshu’s parents originally hail from Qaladize, a town in the Kurdistan Region’s Sulaimani province. They immigrated to the UK in 1996 during the civil war and settled in London. She has visited Kurdistan several times, with her last visit being six years ago.
"The airline I work for does not fly to Kurdistan, only to Europe and parts of North Africa. Otherwise, I would have loved to return to Kurdistan as a pilot this time," she said, expressing “hope to work for a Kurdish airline in the future."
So far, Heshu has flown to approximately 45 countries across Europe and North Africa.
“We fly to many different airports in each country, so the number of airports would be double that amount or even more,” she noted.
Balancing career and education
In addition to her career as a pilot, Heshu is also pursuing a degree in Cyber Security at a university in London.
"The attendance at the university I study in is flexible. I dedicate the days when I am not working at the airline to attend my lectures at the university," she explained.
Heshu is set to earn her bachelor’s degree after one more year of study. "I am young and eager to learn different things," she noted.
Offering heartfelt advice to other Kurdish girls who aspire to become pilots she said, “Never mind what others say. They will tell you that you are a woman, that you are Kurdish, that you cannot do this job - but always remember, you are doing this for yourself.”
Heshu passionately stressed, “Being Kurdish does not mean we are unable to achieve our goals like people from other nationalities. On the contrary, we can achieve our goals because we are Kurdish! We can do what anyone else can do - if not better!”
