Ademilola Odujinrin
A
Nigerian pilot, Captain Ademilola Odujinrin, who made history becoming
the first African pilot to fly solo around the world, has said Nigeria
has capacity to create two airports in each state of the federation but
lack drive to push for it.
This he said would create thousands of jobs, connectivity and broaden
the scope of doing business in the country.According to him, for
Nigeria to compete globally, our mind-set needs to change. “We have to
believe in ourselves that we can do it. There is nothing stopping
Nigeria from having two airports in each state.”
Addressing media upon his return to Lagos recently, he revealed that
the journey spanned 25 countries across five continents and lasted nine
months.He explained that although the actual duration of the journey was
300 hours (six weeks), the journey was elongated by weather, technical,
financial, logistics and clearances of getting into different countries
serves as a challenge.
“If Nigeria has two airports in a state, it creates jobs, connectivity among other opportunities. It doesn’t have to be massive airports, it could be aeroplane that takes up to 36 planes,” he said.
Odujinrin, who works for Air Djibouti, completed the final leg of his
historic journey on Wednesday, March 29, 2017, landing safely at
Washington Dulles International Airport, United States, where the
journey began in September 2016.
The pilot completed the entire circumnavigation in a Cirrus SR22,
stopping in more than 15 countries on five continents, returning to
Washington DC. The flight is part of Project Transcend, a foundation,
which aims to inspire young people to achieve their goals, regardless of
their personal circumstances.
Odujinrin said: “Ever since I was a child, I dreamed of one-day
flying around the world. We have a responsibility to lead by example and
follow our dreams. I want African children to think: ‘I can do this
too!” Odujinrin has logged over 4,000 hours as a commercial Boeing 737
pilot since earning his pilot licence six years ago.
He charged government and institutions across Africa to provide
enabling environment for such initiatives to thrive.He said: “I embarked
on the tedious journey to encourage Nigerian and African youths at
large to inspire a can-do spirit that will help them pursue their dream
and never give up.”
He also has the lofty hopes to reshape the perception of Nigeria
through great achievements that defy expectation and to redefine the
African narrative.Speaking on his survival, he revealed, “I lived on
water and energy bars just to avoid food as I didn’t have access to
toilets.”
In his goodwill message relayed by video chat, Ooni of Ife, Oba
Enitan Ogunwusi commended the determination exhibited by the young
adventurer.“I hope Nigerian youths can draw inspiration from his
laudable achievement. I am happy that although a lot of people around
the world know Nigeria for negative news, this is something positive
that Nigeria can be celebrated,” he added.
SOURCE:-guardian.ng
