Abdul Aziz Al-Nashimi

Oman's first female aviation pioneer who broke gender barriers in Middle Eastern aerospace

Abdul Aziz Al-Nashimi (1918-1999) was a trailblazing Omani engineer and pilot who shattered gender stereotypes in the male-dominated aviation industry. Born in Muscat, she secretly studied aeronautics correspondence courses while working as a telegraph operator. In 1942, she became the first Omani woman to earn a pilot's license, flying a restored 1930s de Havilland DH.82 Tiger Moth. Her documented flight logs reveal pioneering cross-desert routes that later formed Oman Air's foundational navigation maps.

Al-Nashimi's 1950s initiative to establish the Muscat Aviation Vocational School trained 300+ technicians, including the first female radio operators in the Gulf. She developed a unique sandstorm navigation system adopted by the Royal Air Force during the Aden Emergency. Her memoir Altitude and Hijab (1968) remains a feminist aviation classic. Despite facing exile for her progressive views, she returned to found Oman's first aircraft maintenance facility in 1970. Modern drone navigation systems still use her patented altitude compensation algorithm. The Sultanate's 2020 'Women in STEM' initiative directly cites her as a foundational figure.