Hanadi Zakaria al-Hindi

Hanadi Zakaria al-Hindi
هنادي زكريا الهندي
BornSeptember 1978 (age 46)
OccupationAviator

Hanadi Zakaria al-Hindi (Arabic: هنادي زكريا الهندي) is the first Saudi woman to become a pilot.[1]

Biography

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She was born in Mecca in September 1978. She passed her final exams at the Middle East Academy for Commercial Aviation in Amman, Jordan on 15 June 2005.[2] She has a ten-year contract with Prince Al-Waleed bin Talal’s Kingdom Holding Company[3][4] as a pilot of his private jet, the Kingdom.

Recognitions

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Al-Waleed, who is considered a proponent for female emancipation in the Saudi world, financed her training[2] and stated on her graduation that he is "in full support of Saudi ladies working in all fields".[3] Al-Hindi became certified to fly within Saudi Arabia in 2014.[5]

Reports highlighted the irony that a Saudi woman is allowed to pilot an aeroplane but may not drive a car (although this has changed in 2017[6]).[3][4] Al-Hindi, however, does not see this as a contradiction.[3]

References

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  1. ^ جريدة الوادي، هنادى الهندى أول [[طائرة|كابتن طائرة]] بالسعودية وقائدة الطائرة الخاصة ب[[الوليد بن طلال]]، بتاريخ 1 مارس 2014] Archived 2016-03-05 at the Wayback Machine
  2. ^ a b First Saudi Female Pilot Graduates, Arab News, 16 June 2005. Retrieved 21 October 2007.
  3. ^ a b c d "First Saudi Female Pilot Lands Job With Kingdom Holding". 24 November 2004. Archived from the original on November 24, 2004.
  4. ^ a b CNN Insight, January 19, 2005.
  5. ^ "Saudi Arabia: First woman to get pilot license". 23 April 2014. Retrieved 24 April 2017 – via www.bbc.com.
  6. ^ "Saudi Arabia to allow women to drive for first time". www.abc.net.au. September 26, 2017.