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Siza Mzimela Becomes First Black Woman To Own An Airline

Published

8 years ago

May 11, 2016

After years of working in the aviation field, South African businesswoman Sizakele Petunia Mzimela is making history as the first black woman to launch her own airline.

Sizakele Petunia Mzimela fly blue crane

In September, the power woman, who is widely referred to as Siza, kicked off operations for Fly Blue Crane at the O.R. Tambo International Airport in South Africa.

The airline currently has two 50-seat ERJ 145s and offers low-cost domestic flights within the South African region.

However, Siza makes it clear that she hopes to expand destinations to Botswana, Namibia,Zimbabwe, and the Democratic Republic of Congo in the near future.

In addition to her new airline, Siza is also the founder and executive chairperson of Blue Crane Aviation, which is an aviation services company that focuses on African airlines and provides them with airline consulting, aviation legal services, and aircraft management services in an effort to give them access to the global market.