One of the very few Emirati Female Air Traffic Control Officers in the world, Jouhayna AlMheiri on how using her voice has allowed her to follow her passions and inspire others to follow in her footsteps.
As a young woman, Jouhayna AlMheiri was still undecided about her career path, but after applying for several different roles she was accepted onto a program to train as an Air Traffic Control Officer. After two and a half years of training in one of the most complex airspaces in the world, Jouhayna made history by becoming the second Emirati woman to successfully complete her training in the Sheikh Zayed Air Navigation Center. Almost a decade later and Jouhayna still has a true passion for her role and also has become an On-The-Job Training Instructor.
She is very passionate about training the next generation of Air Traffic Control Officers. In her spare time, Jouhayna uses her voice to share her story with others and inspire people and remind them that hard work truly does pay off. She has started to dip her toe in the realm of public speaking and most recently hosted the Global Air Traffic Management Conference at the world-famous Dubai Airshow and the Women in Aviation Middle East Chapter General Assembly earlier this year. As she continues to share her story with others we find out more about what it takes to be in this high-pressured job and her aspirations for the future.
What first inspired you to have a career in air traffic control and tell us a little about your journey to where you are today?
I was never really sure what I wanted to do as a career as it is a big decision to decide what you want to do for the rest of your life! All I knew was that I wanted to be independent. So I applied to every scholarship program I could find. I applied to be a pilot at one point and didn’t make it through, so when I heard about Air Traffic Control, I thought to myself, I didn’t get the opportunity to control one aeroplane but now I have the opportunity to control them all! So I applied for the Air Traffic Control Training Program and there were a series of exams that I successfully completed as part of the selection process. This included English, Mental Maths, Physics and a Psychometric exam. I have been working now for around eight years and I genuinely can’t imagine myself doing anything else. I am now working as an On-The-Job Training Instructor as well and I absolutely love teaching the next generation of air traffic controllers to protect the skies of my country.
Has the amount of women increased since you started?
Yes, we have one more Emirati woman that successfully made it through the training process this year and I had the privilege of training her on her final days before her validation. There are also many other women in batches to follow that are working on their Air Traffic Control Training as we speak which I am very excited about. It is a very tough training program and some people don’t even make it past day one. Around the world, only one per cent of the people that apply get in and once you get in the fail rate is over seventy per cent.
In simple terms, air traffic control is essentially separating planes from one another by giving the pilots instructions on how to do so. In the UAE it’s done by voice so we speak to the pilots over the radio and monitor them on a radar screen. To explain it to people I usually tell them to imagine that I’m the voice of Google Maps but in the sky and I provide them with instructions in real-time to let them know where to fly and we as Air Traffic Control Officers not only have to visualise 2D but also 3D because we have aircraft stacked above each other as well as side by side. To understand the gravity of the job, imagine you’re playing a video game with no “game over” option.
What’s the biggest challenge you face in what you do?
I think my challenges would be the same as they are for everybody. Regardless of age or gender air traffic control in itself is difficult. The training is extremely vigorous because there are going to be thousands of lives that are eventually going to be on your hands every shift you work. Imagine this, a surgeon impacts one life at a time. Air Traffic Control Officers impact hundreds and thousands at a time. So if you can’t handle an intense exam you can’t be expected to handle all the souls on board. So the challenges are as they would be for anyone; adapting to shift work, dealing with my training abroad, working in a male-dominated field. A lot was happening at the same time when I started my training. There was a lot happening in my personal life too and on top of that, I was undergoing an extremely tough training program. I was fortunate to receive good advice from my mentors at work who told me to imagine that when I come into the building, everything outside stays outside and once I start to work the only concern are following procedures and the blips on my radar screen. Over time I learned how to compartmentalize my thoughts.
You are working in a male-dominated industry – how do you make sure your voice is heard?
People always tell me that they hear me before they see me when I walk into a room! So I feel like my personality in its self is dominant and that I make people listen when there’s something I have to say. I’m not shy and I don’t mind stepping on a few toes if I have to. I have observed that women in most industries, even if it’s a female-dominated industry, may struggle to get their point across and stand their ground. I believe the mix of obstacles I have overcome in my life so far and my personality type have me wired to be able to stand up for myself and get my point across and make sure I sprinkle it with a whole lot of sass when appropriate.
Who has been your biggest supporter or a mentor that you look to?
I can’t name just one as it has changed throughout the different phases of my life. Growing up, I had some great women in my life: my mother, both my grandmothers, my aunty. All of them were pioneers and women who were ahead of their time. My mother was the first female vet in the UAE, my aunty was the third female gynaecologist in Tanzania. My grandmother was orphaned at a very young age in Tanzania and lived on the streets before being taken in by an orphanage. She went to medical school and after she met the love of her life she decided to stay home with the kids and start her own business from the house. Imagine this was three generations ago but she was so headstrong and knew what she wanted and just went for it. She became a fashion designer and started stitching her own clothes at the same time as looking after the kids, which in those days was unheard of. I think all these strong women around me helped shape who I am today.
And then at work, there are many people who I have turned to for advice over the years and I am extremely fortunate to have had such amazing mentors and do to this day still turn to them for advice.
Earlier this year I had the President of Women in Aviation – Middle East Chapter ask me to host a conference for her and I honestly told her that I didn’t think I had the skillset to have such a big responsibility. She said to me, “You control all the planes in the sky. The stage will be a piece of cake for you!” She saw the potential in me to do public speaking and pushed me well out of my comfort zone with this request. I went on the hunt for a public speaking coach and found Christina Ioannidis who took me from a person who had stage fright and a fear of public speaking to a person that hosts conferences and does motivational speeches.
What would you like to achieve with your skill for public speaking?
I realised that the more I tell my story and put myself out there, the more I inspire people, not even just in aviation. I recently did a motivational panel discussion at GEMS New Millennium School and had to talk to a hall full of teenagers about how to battle procrastination and the feedback was incredible. I absolutely loved being there for them, giving them advice and being their “big sister”.
This month we are celebrating the 50th anniversary of the UAE, what does this occasion mean to you?
Many people think about the future but for me, I like to revel in the present as well as the past and think about how far we’ve come. I think it’s important to be mindful and appreciative of how far we have come and move forward accordingly.
What is a message that you would send to your country on this occasion?
I think I’m going to have to quote a rock star here! I’m currently listening to Dave Grohl from The Foo Fighter’s audiobook and there is one line that he says that really resonated with me: “If you can perceive it, you can achieve it.” The UAE is quite literally the embodiment of this line. We have achieved in half a century what other countries needed centuries to achieve.
Where would you like to see the UAE in another 50 years?
I can’t even imagine! There will be more air traffic for sure – I’m sure I’ll be directing flying cars by then! The sky is not even the limit and I think anything can be achieved and I am excited to be a part of what is to come.
What is a message you would send to other women looking to get into the industry?
I won’t sugar coat it, it’s not easy, however, if you do choose to work within air traffic control I would definitely encourage you to join. The pay is good so you will have your independence – I am supporting my entire family right now. When you’re finished at work and you take your headset off you don’t have to take your work home with you which is amazing = work-life balance.
When you’re not working how do you spend your time?
Prior to the pandemic, I travelled at almost every opportunity I got. Sometimes I would get off a night shift and drive myself to the airport and hop on a plane and explore and experience another country and culture for a couple of days. During the pandemic I enjoy gardening, taking my dogs to the beach and am currently working on my motorcycle license so I can explore the UAE from a different perspective.
We know you love to travel – where do you like to visit the most?
It depends. If it’s to see family I like to go to the US as most of my mother’s side of the family lives there and nothing beats my grandmother’s cooking! If it’s for me to socialise, I would visit friends I have scattered around the world or meet them in destinations for us to explore. So far, Greece has my heart and I can’t wait to go back for a visit.
What would you still like to do that you haven’t done yet?
The Air Traffic Control Officer in me is working on being a part of the movement in automation of Air Traffic Control in a radar environment. The artist in me dreams to have my art in a gallery one day.
