A member of the Al Maktoum family — one of the most significant royal families in the United Arab Emirates — Sheikha Mozah bint Marwan bin Mohammed bin Hasher Al Maktoum proved that she possesses her own greatness, one that has brought honor to her family, to her country, and to all Arab women.
A bona fide thrill-seeker, Sheikha Mozah has dared to do things the ordinary person would be reluctant to do. Turning 27 this year, Sheikha Mozah is part of Forbes Middle East 2022 30 under 30 because of her innumerable achievements at such a young age.
Born on December 5, 1996, Sheikha Mozah always partook in outdoorsy and intense activities such as horse riding, rock climbing, boxing sessions, trampolining, and coasteering. At 12 years old, her highness took her first flying lesson on a Robinson 22 during a family holiday to the United Kingdom. From this point on, her highness fully embraced her love for the skies with her family’s support for her desire for action and adventure.
At only age 13, Sheikha Mozah skydived for the first time and later on in 2013 achieved a Guinness World Record for wing walking. In the same year, she also entered Oxford Aviation, one of the world’s leading commercial pilot training schools, and graduated as the youngest in her class.
2015 was another big year for the emirati princess as she became the first woman in the Royal Family to fly for Emirates Airline. She also established the Women in Aviation Association (Shehana) to provide support and increase awareness of opportunities in this field—not only as pilots or crew members but as lawyers, engineers, doctors, and other vital roles.
In 2016, Sheikha Mozah passed the APP First Officer Programme from CAE Oxford Aviation Academy and completed her first assisted flight assignment as a pilot for Emirates Airlines the following year and became the first female commercial pilot from Dubai’s royal family.
In 2019, Sheikha Mozah achieved another first by being the first woman in the U.A.E. to join Dubai Police Airwing as a first lieutenant pilot in 2019.
This year, her highness became the first woman to ever fly the AW609 tiltrotor at the U.S. helicopter headquarters of Leonardo in Philadelphia.
Sheikha Mozah is indeed a force to be reckoned with as she takes on the skies with pure passion for flying. She calls on the UAE Youth, particularly the women, to persevere in the midst of challenges and to overcome challenges with determination in order to serve the country.
“If we sit there and wait for our dreams to materialize, that day will never come. Many of us are really great at creating boundaries inside our minds” —Sheikha Mozah Al Maktoum
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