Aviation expo set to educate youth
Africa Aerospace and Defence (AAD) expo provides a unique opportunity for young and old Soweto residents.
The Africa Aerospace and Defence (AAD) expo provides a unique opportunity for young and old Soweto residents to gain an understanding of Africa’s aerospace capabilities and will be taking place September 19 to 23 at the Waterkloof Air Base.
The AAD runs a Youth Development Programme (YDP) which is aimed at introducing and educating youth from side-lined communities to the interesting world of aviation and the opportunities available within this sector.
Learners from different dinaledi high schools throughout the country will be invited to experience the expo, learn about funding opportunities within the aviation and defence sectors and interact with individuals who are currently in the sectors.
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“Gone are the days where our children are actually restricted to being a teacher or a doctor, so the YDP actually opens learners up to see what else is out there,” explained Lulu Mzili, Group Executive of Business Enablement at Armscor.
The YDP has been extended to run as an ongoing annual programme which goes beyond the expo, which takes place every two years. It not only targets school going youth but also university graduates as it links them to vacation work and internship opportunities.
“Other international exhibitions do not have this initiative. We are the only aerospace and defence expo which is showing learners the career opportunities within these industries,” said Mzili.
The AAD partners hope to see the YDP grow beyond showcasing opportunities available and assisting schools to improve their mathematics and science pass rates.
“We would like to establish or partner with bursary schemes that will take some of these young people all the way through to university training,” explained Simphiwe Hamilton, AMD executive director.
This year’s AAD expo promises to be the biggest yet since its commencement as 90 delegates from 47 countries are expected and 44 confirmed aircraft on show including some of the South African Airforce’s available fleet.
The airshow will close off in spectacular fashion with a surprise according to the Commercial Aviation Association of South Africa (CAASA) CEO Leon Dillman, this will also be another first for the AAD.
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