World Youngest Pilot

Interview with Seth Van Beek Youngest Zimbabwean Pilot

# Seth what really inspired you to become a Pilot and what was the whole motivation behind this dream? A viation has been a passion from a young age for me, and I always wanted to find out how a “large metal tube” manages to stay in the sky for such lengthy periods of and this curiosity helped to fuel my desire and passion for aviation. Also I had always wanted to break a world record and I found out that this was possible in aviation hence why I started the training so early in order to achieve one of my life long goals, I would say that in everything I do I am very goal oriented. # Seth which principles or core values do you live by every singleday? A t the centre of everything I do is my religion which is christianity and I try and do everything In a Godly manner, but I also stick by two main principles in life which are that in everything I do I remain integral and humble, for me humbleness is a very important factor of life because I believe that everyone is an equal and no matter where you are in life you should treat everyone with the same respect whether it be your boss at work or the person who cleans the offices after everyone in the company has gone home. # Seth Since you are one of the youngest pilots this world has ever produced, don’t people get nervous when they realize that their lives are in the hands of a 19-year-old is sitting right behind the flight deck? D efinitely people will get a sense of nervousness if they see a young person flying such a huge aircraft, its only natural, But I believe that flying is a skill and it doesn’t necessarily mean that an older pilot is better or safer then a younger pilot and no matter our age we all go through the same training which ensures that a certain level of competency has been achieved and that our knowledge and aircraft handling Is at an above satisfactory level. Throughout our training we are always reminded that safety is the most important thing when conducting any flight, so as pilots safety is our main priority in any flight operation. # Well I realized that you speak so many languages, what really triggered your interests in languages and how has that become a plus in your career? I really enjoy interacting with people and learning about different cultures, this was the main thing that helped me to learn many languages, but as a child I traveled alot with my family and I found it beneficial being able to communicate with the local people in their language and it will also help me to understand their culture more. It has been very beneficial in my flight career being multi lingual because being a pilot is not only about communicating in the cockpit with the other pilot but there’s passengers and ground crew, in certain circumstances or occasions it may be more effective to talk to them in their mother tongue in order for the flight to be conducted in a more effective manner. # Seth what’s your advice to a young person out there stuck in a third world country but still believes in their dreams to become one of the most recognized individuals in their area of expertise? I believe that country or location should never hinder anyone from trying to achieve their goals or dreams because many great people have not come from favourable backgrounds, theres an old proverb that says “if you never try you’ll never know” so if you give up on your dream because you feel at a disadvantage you’ll never know if you would have achieved it If you had just pushed that extra bit harder. In everything you do always give of your best whether it be on the sports field or late at night preparing for the exam you have coming up just give it 110%, also success is determined by what you do when no one is watching and success is a mindset not a title. Personally theres a bible scripture I stand by which says “seek ye first the kingdom of God and all these things will be added unto you” and I believe in my success it’s all by the grace of God. 37

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