Shaesta Waiz
Shaesta Waiz is a pioneering pilot and STEM advocate who made history as the first Afghan American—and at the time, the youngest woman—to fly solo around the world. She hosts the podcast Aviate with Shaesta, which celebrates women in aviation and aerospace.
Left Seater
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Trailblazer
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Afghan Refugee
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Left Seater • Trailblazer • Afghan Refugee •
More about Shaesta
After 145 days, 22 countries, and five continents, on October 4, 2017, Shaesta Waiz became the youngest woman ever to circumnavigate the world alone, in a single-engine aircraft. Along the way, she conducted outreach events inspiring more than 3,000 young girls and boys, including in her native Afghanistan.
Born in a refugee camp, Shaesta and her family traveled from Afghanistan to America in 1987 to escape the Afghan-Soviet war. One of six sisters, Shaesta and her family grew up in Richmond, California, where schools couldn’t retain educators and a stream of substitute teachers taught kids with shared textbooks. Dropping out was the norm and the path forward appeared limited. But, when Shaesta was a teenager, her parents took her and her sisters on a trip. Once the plane took off, Shaesta was hooked on the magic of flight and the distance it put between her and earthly cares.
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Shaesta became the first person in her family to earn college degrees—her Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees earned from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, and the first Afghan woman ever to receive her commercial pilot’s license. Shaesta founded the Women’s Ambassador Program at Embry-Riddle to mentor and support other young women pursuing aviation and engineering degrees. The solo circumnavigation became the launchpad for her nonprofit organization, Dreams Soar, designed to promote STEM and aviation education for underprivileged children worldwide. Dreams Soar has partnered with over 30 industry partners and schools and hosted an additional 31 outreach events in nine countries, reaching more than 12,000 kids.
Speaking Topics
Resilience
Exploration
Overcoming Obstacles
Watch Shaesta in action
Presentations
Women with Wings
Women make up just 20% of the aviation workforce—and only 4% of pilots worldwide. Afghan-American Captain Shaesta Waiz, the first female certified civilian pilot born in Afghanistan, the youngest woman to fly solo around the world in a single-engine plane, and the host of Aviate with Shaesta, explores the past, present, and future of women in aviation through inspiring conversations.
“Everyone has oceans to fly if they have the heart to do it. Is it reckless? Maybe. But what do dreams know of boundaries?”
– Shaesta Waiz