Nationwide — Justin Mutawassim, a 27-year-old African American pilot at Delta Air Lines, fulfilled his childhood aim of becoming a pilot with the same airline where he previously worked as a ramp agent.

Mutawassim’s passion in aviation began when he was five years old, when he rode an airplane for the first time and explored its cockpit. He told the Washington Post that he had always aspired to be a pilot.

However, the path to his goal became obscured at some point. He was extremely disappointed when his middle school instructor, who was in the US Air Force, incorrectly taught him that perfect vision was required to become a pilot. Mutawassim, who had to wear spectacles, stated that he had no way to verify it at the time.

That is why, after graduating high school, Mutawassim decided to pursue a profession in broadcasting. He started college, got some jobs, and enjoyed it, but it wasn’t as rewarding as he had hoped.

A year later, he chose to drop out of college and start working as a ramp agent carrying bags for Delta Air Lines in 2014. His enthusiasm for aircraft grew stronger. He soon rose through the ranks, becoming a supervisor and then an instructor. However, he lacked the confidence to follow his dream of becoming a pilot at the moment.

 

Mutawassim’s life began to alter in 2016, when he met Ivor Martin, a Black pilot. Martin offered to coach him after learning about his long-held desire of becoming a pilot. Mutawassim completed his licenses in less than a year thanks to Martin’s help.

In 2018, he started as a pilot for a minor airline before moving on to a start-up. He applied for a pilot position at Delta in 2022 after learning that the airline no longer required pilots to have a college degree. After a few months of training, he was officially a Delta pilot.

Mutawassim used Twitter to celebrate his achievement. He shared photos of himself as a Delta ramp agent in 2016 and a Delta pilot in 2022. “This one has been 6 long years in the making,” he said in his now-viral post.

Mutawassim, who lives in New York City, is now pursuing a degree in Aviation Science and aspires to become a captain. He also volunteers to assist young pilots, paying forward what Martin did for him.