Ewa Air : Mahoran pilots

Mahoran pilots fly Ewa Air planes. They were born in Mayotte, motivated and eager to resume commercial flights.

Local jobs

Several sectors of activity have been affected, in particular that of tourism, but this sector is the provider of many local jobs.. There is one that we don't know well, it's that of an aircraft pilot. But Mayotte has several aircraft pilots who have followed the qualifications. Two are working at Ewa Air, Fernand Keisler and Zidine Abdallah are the two pilots of the company, they are mahorais. At least other young people 5 are currently in training schools to also become Mayotte pilots.

enthusiasts

Aviation enthusiasts, they both studied aeronautics before choosing to return to their island to participate in its development. Pilot training lasts a minimum of two years and then pilots pursue qualifications to be able to fly on different types of aircraft.. Zidine has worked at Ewa for two years, before he was a pilot at ATR and Fernand joined the company in 2016, it was he who ferried one of the two new planes that Ewa bought a few years ago from the production plant in mainland France to the island in the lagoon.

For one as for the other, if aviation is a passion, the Ewa air company is a well-considered choice. For both pilots, there are two main reasons for this choice.

The first, participate in the development of Mayotte. The other reason is working in a dynamic company. “A career with Ewa, it's like a career in another company, the company offers its pilots and more broadly its staff career development that gives us the opportunity to consider interesting trajectories” justifies Fernand Kesleir.

Mahoran Company

The two Mahoran pilots also explain that they are quite surprised to hear that Ewa is not a Mahoran company. They recall that the share capital is largely held by Mayotte residents, including the Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

They also specify that 80% of the company's employees are Mahorais. Those who are not, it is more for lack of local skills than for another reason.. They also explain that the company is developing in the area, before the end of the year Ewa will offer flights to Reunion Island and then to Mauritius. This development requires obtaining an air transport certificate, specific posts must be created for this purpose, it is Mahorais who will take them and better still employees who evolve in the company. On the other hand, the acquisition of an aircraft allowing medium-haul flights will also allow pilots to position themselves.

If Zidine Abdallah thinks about the possibility of flying on this type of aircraft, which would require him to train to acquire the necessary certificates, Fernand Kesleir rather considers his professional trajectory as an instructor pilot. Thanks to internal training programs, he has already succeeded in becoming an instructor for exchanges between the aircraft and all the actors operating around it, i.e. customers on board, but also the control towers, airport staff...

Nevertheless, both pilots say they are frustrated with the current situation. For a year and a half, they flew very little and maintained their certificates thanks to in-house training. They can't wait for the sky to reopen. They look to the future with optimism.

The sky begins to reopen

Indeed, Comoros have already reopened their skies. Madagascar is also preparing to reopen its own. Pending, the borders of Mayotte are still closed to commercial flights coming from abroad until 9 June. The prefect will then have to specify if they are going to extend the closure or if the opening of the borders is put in place again.

If the borders open, Ewa will be able to resume its rotations to the Union of the Comoros without delay., but 48h, planes will be able to take off again.

Flights to Dar Es Salam may also resume within the same time frame. Regarding Madagascar, a source familiar with the matter suggests that flights from abroad to Tamatave and Nosy Be could be authorized. Good news for Eva, the latter is a regular destination.

The two pilots say they are very happy to resume their seats in the cockpit in the coming weeks..

Source : Anne Constance Onghéna – France Mayotte Morning

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