Friends Ridiculed me but I stay focused - Captain Solomon Quainoo
4th October 2018
Ghanaian Pilot, Captain Solomon Nana Kwakye Quainoo has urged the youth not to give up on their life ambitions but work hard to make it a reality.
Being a typical example of a bigger fulfilling dream, Captain Solomon Quainoo believed everything is achievable so far as one stays focused and determined.
Captain Quainoo was in the studios of Peace FM Thursday to recount the sequence of his historic journey to success after flying the world's largest aircraft to Accra on Tuesday, October 4, 2018.
He made history as the first Ghanaian to fly the world's largest passenger airliner, Emirates A380.
He shared on the station's flagship programme "Kokrokoo" some struggles he went through before becoming a Pilot.
He noted that his passion to pursue piloting began at the age of six and since then, he has always stayed focused on his dream.
According to him, he came from a poor family background and anytime he told his friends about his wild dream to be a Pilot, they would ridicule him but he kept his faith .
“Since the age of six, I made up my mind to fly a plane. When I said that, everybody laughed at me because I was coming from a poor family. My mother and father didn’t have money; so my friends laughed at me saying I’m not serious…”, he said.
He also recounted a moment he nearly gave up because his attempts to gain admission into the Ghana Air Force to do a piloting course after completing Koforidua Secondary Technical School failed.
"....i was indeed demoralized following my inability to be enrolled into the Air Force. A friend picked up and filled forms on my behalf so i could go to the University of Ghana where i offered Mathematics and Physics before travelling to the United Kingdom doing menial jobs to save money to pursue my dream," he narrated.
In spite of the bustle and hustle he was compelled to go through in life, he never lost his passion but held on to see light at the end of the tunnel.
He successfully gained an opportunity to work with the British Airways before proceeding later to join Emirates where he has been working for seven years as Captain.
Speaking in an exclusive interview with the host Kwami Sefa Kayi, Captain Quainoo urged Ghanaians to be inspired by his achievement and know that with "determination and staying focused to what you want to do, the help will come. If you stay truthful and with clear conscience, the help will come; you don’t even have to fight for it…They should stay focused, determined and keep going because at certain times, they will feel frustrated. They might think maybe people are leaving them behind but once you stay focused, determined and keep at it; they can always become what they want to be”.