Yesterday morning, all that I could think of was “what will this week have to offer?” There were so many mixed emotions just continuously building up inside of me, but the most powerful ones were curiosity and excitement. The curiosity was from the urging sensation to learn and understand more about a place that actually plays a role in protecting our Blue Economy. The excitement was from the joy and happiness I felt when actually realizing that I, amongst other applicants, was chosen to be one of the interns of the 2nd edition of the Blue Economy internship program 2017. Before I continue, allow me to introduce myself, my name is Johnise Philoe and I’m 16 years old. The opportunity to participate in the 2nd edition of the Blue Economy Internship program was brought to my attention by members from my school who participated in the very first edition. My first day at the Seychelles Air Force (SAF) was quiet relaxing. The main reason for this was due to the warm welcome from the Commanding Officer (CO), Lieutenant Colonel Pouponneau along with other staff members. During that day my two other colleagues and I were introduced with a brief history of the formation of Seychelles Air Force (SAF). Did you know that they were known as Seychelles Air Wing (SAW) when they were first formed in 1978? Nowadays the Seychelles Air Force consists of only 3 aircrafts, that is; My favorite amongst the 3 aircrafts is the Dornier 228-202K (SY-010). Today, the day started off very calm and quiet. My colleagues and I were finally introduced to our supervisor then we continued the day learning about how vessels at sea are easily located through a system called Vessel Monitoring System (VMS). Late in the afternoon, there was a sudden spike in the atmosphere. Every crew members in base was moving and working much faster. This was due to a distress signal sent out by a local fishing boat. Witnessing everyone around me bursting into action alongside the Seychelles Coast Guard (SCG), through radio messages, was simply amazing and quite exciting. The Seychelles Air Force (SAF) had to carry out a rescue mission along with Seychelles Coast Guard (SCG).Sadly I had to leave as it was getting late but it was seriously a superb experience.
Quick update: tomorrow my colleagues and I are going for our first ride in the Dornier 228-202K (SY-010) for an hour. There is so much excitement in only two days and I love every second of it. To be continued, Johnise
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AuthorThe interns of the Prosperity & Environment: Promoting sustainable development opportunities for youth in the Blue Economy sector. Archives
January 2018
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