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Mohammed Abubakar is a man who had dreams of becoming a pilot. Starting from the bottom as an aircraft cleaner, Abubakar’s hard work eventually paid off, and, 24 years later, the Nigeria native became a pilot, Black Culture News reported.
His journey to becoming a pilot wasn’t easy. After failing to enroll at Kaduna Polytechnic, he landed a job as an airplane custodian at Kobo Air, making 200 Nigerian Naira (N200), equivalent to 50 cents a day. Many didn’t think he would take the job. Eventually, things started looking up when Abubakar was promoted to ground staff and then cabin crew. Due to his experience and the approval of his superiors, he went from making N200 a day to N17,000 monthly.
Abubakar went to work for Aero Contractors as a flight attendant, increasing his salary. Despite the higher wage, the promotions weren’t enough to satisfy him. Abubakar desired above and beyond — to become a pilot.
“I joined a contribution system with my colleagues, and when it was my turn to receive the accumulated funds, there was a sizeable amount of money,” Abubakar said.
After saving up his money, the Nigerian then enrolled in pilot training in Canada and eventually earnedearned his private pilot license, which he could sponsor himself. As it looked like his goals were within his reach, he ran out of money to pursue his commercial pilot’s license. The deputy managing director at Kobo Air assisted Abubakar with obtaining the permit.
Eight years later, Abubakar landed a job with Azman Air as a pilot and has been flying for them for four years.
“I was able to weather the storm, and here we are today,” Abubakar said.