Priya Doobaree

Background

About Priya Doobaree

My aviation career started in 1998, I trained as an abinitio in France EPAG/IAAG for 2 years. My first assignment was piloting the ATR42/72 for Air Mauritius; I then progressed to flying as a First Officer on the Airbus 330/340. Even as a junior pilot, I possessed a keen interest in the Human Factors domain leading me to join the Human Factors team. My desire to expand my horizons led me to relocate to Singapore where I worked for Jetstar Asia, a subsidiary of Qantas. I received my Command on the Airbus 320 in 2012. Concurrently, I also opted to resume my university studies, which had been interrupted by my selection into the Air Mauritius cadet programme. While juggling the demands of being an aviator, I completed my Bachelor of Arts Degree in Psychology from Murdoch University. Subsequently I completed my Masters in Organisational Psychology from Birkbeck College, University of London. One of my favorite modules was on Safety and Accident Investigation, which I found very relevant to my role at work. In 2021, EAAP accredited me as an Aviation Psychologist on account of my academic qualifications and volunteer work. During the pandemic, I helped set up and oversee a peer-support program for my pilot union. I returned to Air Mauritius where I am now a Captain on the A330. During my 2 years of COVID furlough, I completed a diploma in coaching and an MBA in International Business with IAE, the Sorbonne Business School. This enabled me to work on my business and leadership skills as well as establishing a coaching business. My interest in mentoring younger pilots and improving pilot mental health, has led me to volunteer at Resilient Pilot as a mentor/coach and CBTI. I also design and deliver course for them. I recently graduated from the 99s Professional Pilot Leadership Initiative program and have enjoyed sharing experiences and learning from the other pilots. I feel that the power of community and mentoring is one of the most powerful methods of encouraging more pilots, especially female, to join commercial aviation. In January 2022, I was recruited to join the International Federation of Airline Pilots’-IFALPA’s technical and standards team in a permanent role as Technical Officer. My main responsibility is acting as representative to ICAO on the Air Navigation Commission as a Permanent Industry Observer.