Fatima Music, married Manojlovic, was the first woman from BiH to “conquer” the sky. At a time when driving an airplane was exclusively for men, she decided to learn to fly and she succeed. Several decades later, an initiative to name the Airport Tuzla after her was launched.
She said that she thought that her son was joking when he called her and told everything about the initiative. She could not believe it. She remembered her young days when she started with her hobby at the Aeroklub in Butmir. She could not even imagine back than that she would be the first woman pilot in BiH, whose name will always remain written in the history of BiH.
“Youthful craziness. A friend of mine invited me to go to Aeroklub, she said that it will be interesting. That is how everything started. Elsa, Zlata and I were the only women there, and there were a lot of young men. I remember that we were supposed to drive a glider in front of the commission, but only on the ground, without taking off. I pulled the handle forth and took off,” she said.
“I did not fly with a glider anymore, but I started flying with plane “number three”. Ismet Redzepagic and Ranko Topic trained me. I also received a workbook with all the training and flight hours,” she stated.
However, this was just a hobby for her. When she was 20 years old, she started working in a former Investment Bank, later Privredna Bank. After work, she would run to see her friends and then they would go to Butmir with a small truck. Aeroklub was placed on today’s Coast of Mak Dizdar, where they usually met.
Later on, she decided to stop flying and she enrolled in the Cultural and Artistic Society “Valter Peric”. She was a member of the drama section within which she acted in numerous performances and she often played main roles as well.
“I often say that I fell from the sky on the boards that mean life. I do not know why they were choosing me for the lead roles, because there were so many of us. There were a lot of plays and performances and I really enjoyed it, and I met my late husband there as well,” recalled Fatima.
She sent a message to younger people not to give up on their dreams and to try out everything they want, especially when it comes to amateur flying.
“It is a great sport, there is no difference between men and women, everything that men can do women can do as well. There is no difference in the cockpit. Everyone should feel that because the feeling is just wonderful,” concluded Fatima.
(Source: M. N./Klix.ba)
