Kimberly Ndidi Anyadike (born February 1, 1994) is an
American
American(s) may refer to:
* American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America"
** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America
** American ancestry, p ...
pilot from
Compton, California
Compton is a city located in the Gateway Cities region of southern Los Angeles County, California, United States, situated south of downtown Los Angeles. Compton is one of the oldest cities in the county, and on May 11, 1888, was the eighth ci ...
. In 2009, at the age of 15, she became the youngest
African American
African Americans, also known as Black Americans and formerly also called Afro-Americans, are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, American racial and ethnic group that consists of Americans who have total or partial ancestry from an ...
woman to complete a
transcontinental flight
A transcontinental flight is a non-stop passenger flight from one side of a continent to the other. The term usually refers to flights across the United States, between the East and West Coasts.
History
The first transcontinental multi-stop f ...
across the United States, from
Los Angeles, California
Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
to
Newport News, Virginia
Newport News () is an Independent city (United States), independent city in southeastern Virginia, United States. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 186,247. Located in the Hampton Roads region, it is the List of c ...
. Anyadike was accompanied by an adult safety pilot, and by a retired Air Force pilot who had served with the WWII
Tuskegee Airmen
The Tuskegee Airmen were a group of primarily African American military pilots (fighter and bomber) and airmen who fought in World War II. They formed the 332nd Fighter Group and the 477th Fighter Group, 477th Bombardment Group (Medium) of th ...
. Her plane was autographed by about 50 Tuskegee airmen as she stopped at different cities across the US, and she completed the round-trip journey in a single-engine
Cessna 172
The Cessna 172 Skyhawk is an American four-seat, single-engine, high wing, fixed-wing aircraft made by the Cessna Aircraft Company.Young Aviator's Award from the Tuskegee Airmen in recognition of her achievements. In 2016, she graduated from the
University of California, Los Angeles
The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Its academic roots were established in 1881 as a normal school the ...
with an undergraduate degree.
Early life
Born in 1994, Anyadike grew up in Compton, California. She has an older brother and sister. Her parents are originally from
Nigeria
Nigeria, officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf of Guinea in the Atlantic Ocean to the south. It covers an area of . With Demographics of Nigeria, ...
, and their surname Anyadike means "eye of the warrior" in the
Igbo
Igbo may refer to:
* Igbo people, an ethnic group of Nigeria
* Igbo language, their language
* anything related to Igboland, a cultural region in Nigeria
See also
* Ibo (disambiguation)
* Igbo mythology
* Igbo music
* Igbo art
*
* Igbo-Ukwu, a t ...
language.
Anyadike took dance lessons at the Lula Washington Dance Academy, served as a junior lifeguard at Venice Beach for five years, and volunteered as a youth leader at her local church. At a young age, she showed a strong interest in medical science and anatomy; her mother taught her to identify and name all 206 bones in the body. Anyadike later attended science classes at the Charles Drew University Saturday Science Academy, an L.A.-based
STEM
Stem or STEM most commonly refers to:
* Plant stem, a structural axis of a vascular plant
* Stem group
* Science, technology, engineering, and mathematics
Stem or STEM can also refer to:
Language and writing
* Word stem, part of a word respon ...
subjects program for youth ranging in age from preschool to grade 12.
Aviation training
Anyadike took her first flying lessons at the age of 12, attending an after-school aviation program offered by Tomorrow's Aeronautical Museum for disadvantaged youths. She was inspired to take lessons after reading about Jonathan Strickland, an earlier participant of the program who became the youngest person to fly a fixed-wing aircraft and a helicopter solo in a single day. Anyadike paid for her flight lessons with "museum dollars" earned by washing airplanes and working odd jobs around the Compton Airport. As part of the program's requirements, she maintained a strong academic record throughout the period.
Despite having a fear of heights, Anyadike says that being in the cockpit of a plane is "an amazing experience".
Transcontinental flight
As Anyadike gradually built up 100 hours of flight time, she conceived the idea of flying across the country. She wanted to inspire other youth, while also honouring the
Tuskegee Airmen
The Tuskegee Airmen were a group of primarily African American military pilots (fighter and bomber) and airmen who fought in World War II. They formed the 332nd Fighter Group and the 477th Fighter Group, 477th Bombardment Group (Medium) of th ...
, an African-American air combat unit that served during
World War II
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
. Departing on June 29, 2009, 15-year-old Anyadike flew a single-engine
Cessna 172
The Cessna 172 Skyhawk is an American four-seat, single-engine, high wing, fixed-wing aircraft made by the Cessna Aircraft Company.Newport News, Virginia
Newport News () is an Independent city (United States), independent city in southeastern Virginia, United States. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 186,247. Located in the Hampton Roads region, it is the List of c ...
and back, completing the journey in 13 days. She was accompanied by adult safety pilot Ronnell Norman, and Major Levi H. Thornhill, an 87-year-old retired
U.S. Air Force
The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is one of the six United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Tracing its origins to 1 ...
pilot who had served as a member of the Tuskegee Airmen.
Anyadike made at least a dozen scheduled stops along the way, and navigated through thunderstorms as she flew across Texas. In
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...
, Congresswoman Laura Richardson came to congratulate the young pilot, and in
Tuskegee, Alabama
Tuskegee ( ) is a city in Macon County, Alabama, Macon County, Alabama, United States. General Thomas Simpson Woodward, a Creek War veteran under Andrew Jackson, laid out the city and founded it in 1833. It became the county seat in the same y ...
, Mayor Omar Neal proclaimed July 2 to be "Kimberly Anyadike Day". During stops in different cities, Anyadike's plane was autographed by about 50 different Tuskegee Airmen. Major Thornhill acted as Anyadike's representative to make the necessary introductions with regional chapters of the airmen. Although the record had never been officially tracked before her journey, Anyadike is considered the youngest black American woman — and possibly the youngest person of any race or gender — to have successfully piloted a plane coast-to-coast across the United States.
Upon her arrival home on July 11, 2009, Anyadike received an award from the
County of Los Angeles
Los Angeles County, officially the County of Los Angeles and sometimes abbreviated as LA County, is the List of United States counties and county equivalents, most populous county in the United States, with 9,663,345 residents estimated in 202 ...
California State Capitol
The California State Capitol is the seat of the California state government, located in Sacramento, the state capital of California. The building houses the chambers of the California State Legislature, made up of the Assembly and the Senat ...
. In May 2015, Anyadike received the Tuskegee Airmen's inaugural Young Aviator's Award in Tuskegee, Alabama, in recognition of her achievements as a pilot. In 2017, Anyadike was interviewed about her transcontinental flight for a special
Disney Channel
Disney Channel is an American pay television television channel, channel that serves as the flagship (broadcasting), flagship property of Disney Branded Television, a unit of the Disney Entertainment business segment of the Walt Disney Company ...
segment for
Black History Month
Black History Month is an annually observed commemorative month originating in the United States, where it is also known as African-American History Month. It began as a way of remembering important people and events in the history of the Af ...
entitled 'True Heroes Are Timeless'.
College education
For her college education, Anyadike enrolled at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), majoring in physiological science with minors in African-American studies and Spanish. During her senior year, she was also working as a registered emergency medical technician, and was volunteering for her local chapter of the Flying Samaritans to bring medical care to
Tijuana
Tijuana is the most populous city of the Mexican state of Baja California, located on the northwestern Pacific Coast of Mexico. Tijuana is the municipal seat of the Tijuana Municipality, the hub of the Tijuana metropolitan area and the most popu ...
,
Mexico
Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...
. She graduated with her undergraduate degree from UCLA in June 2016. When asked about future aspirations, Anyadike has said that she plans to enroll in medical school and become a cardiovascular surgeon.
Family
Anyadike's older sister, Kelly, also took aviation lessons at Tomorrow's Aeronautical Museum. In 2008, on her sixteenth birthday, Kelly became the youngest African-American woman to pilot four different fixed-wing aircraft in a single day. In interviews, Anyadike has said that a friendly rivalry with Kelly helped inspire her to complete her own piloting achievements.