The Kenyan flight coordinator saving lives in South Sudan

At around 10:30pm Stella Mwikali receives a call regarding a woman who needs air transport services. The pregnant woman, who has had an obstructed labour, must be airlifted if her baby is to stand a chance of surviving. Ms Mwikali initiates the process of her transfer by completing paperwork and notifying the pilot and the rest of her team of the development.

At 6:30 am, together with her driver, she departs to South Sudan’s capital Juba and readies her team for the flight to Malakal, a town battered by years of war, then to Agok. About one hour later when they arrive in Agok, another semi-urban town, the doctors have prepared the emergency room for the caesarean section. After a successful operation, Mwikali ensures the mother and child safely return home.

For Mwikali, this is what a ‘regular’ day in the office looks like. She moved to South Sudan in 2019, to take up the position of deputy flight coordinator, working with Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF)/ Doctors Without Borders.

As far as she can remember, she was always interested in aeroplanes. When she was a young girl, she would gaze at the airplanes above her in awe. In primary school, she made sure to be included in all trips to the airport. Her entry into aviation was, however, not easy. 

Her father was reluctant to pay her school fees because he preferred that she pursue a career in environmental conservation, while her mother advocated that she becomes a banker. He was so determined that he enrolled and dropped her at the Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) Training Institute in Naivasha.

“For some reason, he changed his mind. Two days later, he came to the institution to find out how I was faring. After a short conversation, he told me that he would support my career of choice if that meant my happiness,” she recalls.

Elated, she returned home and began selecting courses. She eventually settled for aviation, specialising in operations and dispatch, as well as aviation safety and quality. She says she opted for the one-year course because she was eager to join the industry. It gave her hope that she would realise her dreams sooner.

“The licensing examinations were very difficult and I almost gave up.  But when I remembered the sacrifices my family had made, including foregoing the annual fees paid in Naivasha, I pushed myself,” she reminisces.

Once she got her licence, her life was set. Working with local aviation companies, Mwikali discovered her second passion, humanitarian work.

“I first got interested in humanitarian work when I saw people working in different organisations who would put a smile on people’s faces. I was also motivated by my sister, who worked as a volunteer for a local group that raised funds to pay school fees for needy children as well as cleaning children’s homes,” she states.

She is currently working on a project in Old Fangak, where they are dealing with the peak season of malaria and cholera in this flood-prone area.

Remote areas

In Old Fangak, there are no roads or cars, only boats. Many families migrated to the small village with no telephone network, north of South Sudan, to escape armed conflict.

Mwikali’s role is critical because she offers support to a team on the ground. She ensures doctors can get to the most remote areas where there are no medical services, as well as transport essential medical and relief items like tents and blankets to the communities in need. In addition, she delivers food items to other MSF staff running projects across South Sudan.

When a child fell from a building and broke his leg, she had to coordinate a flight from Juba to a remote village to pick up the boy and his father, and take them to hospital.

“The boy was in hospital for almost a month. When he fully recovered, I had to again return him to his family. Seeing the joy on his family members’ faces and those of others we serve, is what keeps me going,” she notes.

When perennial inter-communal violence flares up in parts of South Sudan, Mwikali is tasked with the role of transferring patients in the affected regions to different MSF hospitals, as well as facilitating evacuation of MSF staff.

Even with the contentment that flight coordination brings to Mwikali, South Sudan is a challenging context and the aviation standards are low. Airstrips are surrounded by bushes and the air traffic control is not at its best, she says.  

Self doubt

Operating in a male-dominated industry, she sometimes suffers self-doubt. South Sudan is a very patriarchal country and her proficiency as a woman is constantly questioned. To mitigate this, she has to constantly reassure herself that she is qualified for the role.

To get to where she is today, Mwikali says, it has taken God’s grace and favour, patience, diligence and hard work.

“Being a woman in logistics, especially in aviation, is not a challenge I face easily, but I do so with courage and determination. I strictly stick to my role and maintain high levels of professionalism wherever I go,” she concludes.

Aside from South Sudan, Mwikali has also handled assignments in Goma in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

What the job entails

A flight dispatcher helps in planning flight paths, taking into account aircraft performance and loading, en-route winds, thunderstorm and turbulence forecasts, airspace restrictions, and airport conditions. She or he may also be called an airline dispatcher, flight follower or flight operations officer.

A flight coordinator creates flight itineraries, serve as a dispatcher, and participates in implementing company safety policy and departmental standards and procedures.

She or he is responsible for different accommodations for the flights, such as catering, refuelling, and flight logistics. Clearing flights and checking on all federal air regulations related to the company’s departures are other roles of a flight coordinator.

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