Jetrader - Summer 2016 - 33

Securing
the Future:

A Profile
on ISTAT
Foundation
Student
Andre Fansi
By Cody Smith

The ISTAT Foundation Scholarship Program
continues to aid young individuals aspiring to
join the aviation industry. The Program offers
scholarships of up to $10,000, and is led by a
dedicated Scholarship Committee of the ISTAT
Foundation Board of Trustees and accredited
universities recommending applicable students
who demonstrate academic success and are in
need of financial aid.
In 2006, a student by the name of Andre
Fansi received the ISTAT Scholarship while
attending the University of Central Missouri,
Warrensburg. With the help of the scholarship, Fansi was able to succeed in his studies
and went on to become an IATA instructor
and consultant. For this feature story, we
have interviewed Fansi to learn how the
scholarship impacted his career, see how
the aviation industry in Africa can develop,
and get his feedback on why the ISTAT
Foundation Scholarship Program can benefit
future students.

When were you selected as an
ISTAT Scholarship recipient?
I was selected as an ISTAT Scholarship
recipient in 2006 while a student in the Master
of Science in Aviation Safety program at the
University of Central Missouri, Warrensburg,
Missouri.

What did that do for
your career in aviation?
My ISTAT scholarship was a turning point in
my professional career because it allowed me
to network with many people in the aviation
industry at the ISTAT 24th Annual Conference
in Phoenix, Arizona, in March 2007. It was
there I met aviation expert Roland H. Moore,
Esq., an advocate of ISTAT's role in guiding
and inspiring aviation program graduates,
and he has since become a great mentor.

Why is it important for
ISTAT to continue its
work with students?
ISTAT is composed of high-level aviation
professionals who take time out of their busy

ISTAT Scholarship Recipients with ISTAT Scholarship
Committee Members at 2016 ISTAT Americas.

schedules to share their knowledge with students
aspiring to work in the aviation industry. The
scholarship money and the mentoring offered are
invaluable. The individual success of these ISTAT
mentors is in itself a source of inspiration for
the choice of careers of the scholarship recipients. These recipients in turn choose paths that
position them to be at strategic levels of management and innovation in aviation worldwide.

What is your current role?
I am currently an IATA instructor and consultant. I also perform IOSA (IATA operational
safety audits) with Quali-Audit, Paris (France).
The fact that I am fluent in French, English,
and Spanish makes me a valuable asset for
IATA in instructing courses and assisting airline companies and civil aviation authorities
in Africa.

Tell us about what you've been
working on since graduating
and being selected as an
ISTAT Scholarship recipient?
I have been working hard to instruct and
assist airline companies and civil aviation
authorities in African countries on how to
improve aviation safety and adhere to the
international standards set by ICAO, FAA,
EASA (European Aviation Safety Agency),
and IATA.
My recent work with ANAC Brazzaville
resulted in the improvement and restoration
of the operational fundamentals of the civil
aviation of the Republic of Congo. Since my
work with the ANAC in Brazzaville three years
ago, the number of aviation accidents has
significantly decreased in that country.

You are interested in creating an
Embry-Riddle Aviation Symposium
in Africa. Why is it needed and
what are your hopes for it?
I absolutely believe that there should be an
Embry-Riddle Aviation Symposium in Africa.
Africa is a growing market for air transport. As a huge continent which today absorbs
only 3 percent of world traffic, it will have to
Jetrader * Summer 2016 33

Jetrader - Summer 2016

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