At just 20 years old, Amel became South Sudan’s second female pilot and for her accomplishment, she has been widely celebrated in Africa and in her home country. Ajongo went to aviation school in Nairobi, Kenya, where she spent two and a half years learning the ropes. Amel is the daughter of the country’s former defence minister, James Ajongo Mawut and was encouraged to pursue her dreams at a very young age.
In an interview with Hot in Juba, Ajongo said she ended up as the only woman in her class even though it had started out with eight women in a class of eleven. Ajongo now joins the ranks of the first female pilot of South Sudan, Captain Aluel Bol, who made history in 2011. She had worked at Ethiopian Airlines and Fly Dubai before joining Delta Airline.
