Latoya Steenbok
Science, Tech, Energy, and Innovation
Nominee's Province:
Free State
Age:
Project Name/Description:
Commercial Pilot
From a young age, Latoya Steenbok believed she could fly. And fly she does now, having obtained her private as well as commercial pilot licenses. The 2024 Sunday World Unsung Hero is currently studying for her Airline Transport Pilot License. As a child, Steenbok used to gaze at airplanes flying past her township, wondering what it felt like to fly. It was this childhood fascination that kept her going when she encountered financial problems along the way. “My life as a student pilot was tough and honestly as difficult as it was, I wouldn’t trade it for anything else. I had to stop so many times due to funds and had to go back to home, but I would look for sponsors and gather enough money to go back and push a few flying hours. I had to use that money for flying, food, accommodation and transport to school,” Steenbok narrates. “I faced so many financial challenges, and what I thought was going to take five years took almost eleven years to complete due to lack of finances,” she reveals. Reflecting on the progress made post-1994, Steenbok said one of the difficulties facing young people who want to become pilots is that there are very few government institutions that offer funding, against a huge demand from needy students. “Government needs to do better in funding this scarce skill or making funds available via NSFAS. Why should our course be excluded just because it can only be acquired at a private institution?” she concludes.
