As a First Officer with Mango Airlines, a trained chemical engineer, and lover of the outdoors, Robyn van der Merwe continues to lead a rich and varied path through aviation.
Robyn van der Merwe – First Officer with Mango Airlines
In second grade, Robyn took a family trip to Europe that would prove to be the spark that ignited her aviation journey. The family flew on a Boeing 747-400 to Amsterdam and one of the cabin crew handed Robyn a toy plane, which she keeps to this day. This laid the foundation for a passion that continued to grow throughout her childhood.
As it came to grade 11, Robyn opted to take up work shadowing at Ysterplaat Air Force Base which served to cement aviation as her dream job. Before she pursued that dream however, she first took to studying chemical engineering at CPUT. “I obtained a diploma in my field of study and worked for over a year as a junior process engineer in the mining industry,” she states. “In my BTech year I was accepted as a cadet by South African Express, so I sacrificed a career in chemical engineering to pursue my dream.”
“Laurie Kay taught me that aviation is extremely challenging yet even more rewarding.”
She completed her training with SA Express at 43 Air School and began work after completing her commercial license. Of her influences, Robyn says, “The late Captain Laurie Kay has been part of my aviation career since the very first interview. He frequently visited us at 43 Air School… and always encouraged and inspired me to reach for the skies.”
Advice and beyond the skies
The advice she has for those aspiring to enter the aviation industry in any capacity is to be persistent. “It’s going to be hard; sacrifices are going to be made, but if you work hard with the end goal in sight, you will succeed.”
Robyn now flies the Boeing 737-800 for Mango Airlines and notes how she may be one of the few people around who is able to say they truly love their job. With new challenges every day, new people to meet, and an office view better than any other, she counts herself as lucky.
Some of her best memories in aviation include flying her first-time-flyer grandparents from Cape Town to Port Elizabeth, having her father sit in the jump seat during a night landing in Cape Town, and converting from the Dash 8-Q400 to the 737-800.
“I am always in awe when I fly back home into Cape Town at night and I see how beautiful the city is.”
Beyond the skies however, Robyn leads an active outdoor lifestyle that includes hiking, white river rafting and, more recently, surfing and angling. In high school she obtained Western Province colours for target shooting, represented the province at the National Championships for 3 years and achieved Grade 7 classical piano through UNISA.
Robyn epitomises a multi-faceted individual capable of weaving a rich tapestry of experiences. It appears that she gives 100% to everything she does and in aviation, that is an invaluable asset. The industry is once again moving forward with the future looking bright and dynamic individuals like Robyn will continue to stand tall on a shifting landscape.