17 year old Aberdeen student, Zoë Burnett, prior to take-off at Tayside Aviation.
Air BP has awarded its second Sterling Pilot Scholarship to 17 year old Aberdeen student, Zoë Burnett. This award, which is valued at £10,000 will enable Zoë to complete her Private Pilot’s Licence (PPL) and take the first step towards realising her ultimate ambition of becoming a commercial airline pilot.
Keen to get started, Zoë commenced her PPL training at Tayside Aviation at Dundee Airport in Scotland on 14 June. On finding out the news, Zoë said, “I feel very fortunate and excited to have been selected and am very grateful to Air BP. The award will offer me the chance to pursue my lifelong dream that I otherwise wouldn’t have been able to do. As a young girl, I lived next to Aberdeen Airport and used to watch the aircraft take off and land. I used to dream that one day I would be sitting in the cockpit.”
“I am also delighted to be the first young woman to receive the award,” she added. “Women pilots represent only 5% of the total pilot population and I would like to think that I might inspire more young women to get involved. It seems to me to be a fulfilling and challenging career choice and I’m thoroughly enjoying my training so far.”
“We congratulate Zoë on becoming our second Air BP Sterling Pilot Scholar. She is a bright and motivated young woman and we are delighted that our contribution will help her realise her life-long ambition.” Elena Melia, Air BP’s General Manager, UK and France, said. “Air BP is committed to supporting young aspiring pilots like Zoë who want to build a career in aviation, and to contributing to the wider aviation community. We believe in supporting all areas of aviation, the supply of future pilots, as well as to providing a reliable supply of quality fuel.”
Air BP worked with the Honourable Company of Air Pilots, formerly known as The Guild of Air Pilots and Air Navigators (GAPAN), to organise the Air BP Sterling Pilot Scholarship, which was launched in January 2015 to assist aspiring UK pilots with little or no experience of flying to achieve a Private Pilot’s Licence (PPL).
