Ademilola Odujinrin, a Nigerian-British pilot, made aviation history when he became the first African to fly solo around the globe. He completed the daring nine-month journey across five continents in a single-engine aircraft.
On March 29, 2017, Odujinrin successfully completed his “One Man, One Plane” expedition. He landed at Washington Dulles International Airport, the same location where he began the journey months earlier.
Although he was born in South London, Odujinrin moved to Nigeria at an early age. Friends and colleagues in the aviation industry know him simply as “Lola.” From a young age, he dreamed of joining the small group of pilots who have completed a solo circumnavigation of the globe—fewer than 115 people worldwide. 
At 38, he finally turned that dream into reality. He launched the expedition in June 2016 after two years of planning and completed it in March 2017. Over nine months, he flew across 15 countries on five continents.
Odujinrin named the mission “One Man, One Plane” to reflect both its simplicity and bold ambition. He became the ninth British pilot to achieve a solo global flight and the first African to do so.
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He earned his Private Pilot Licence at just 20 years old in an impressive 19 days. Odujinrin trained professionally in both the United States and the United Kingdom. He later flew commercially for Arik Air for five years before expanding his experience with Air Djibouti. Since obtaining his commercial licence in 2011, he has logged over 4,000 flight hours and holds certification to operate the Boeing 737.
For the journey, he piloted a Cirrus SR22 configured to fly for about four hours before refuelling. His route took him from Washington to Canada, then onward to Iceland, Scotland, England, Valencia, Malta, Egypt, Djibouti, Oman, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Thailand. He later reached Darwin, Australia, after several weeks of flying.
Despite the scale of his achievement, Odujinrin faced serious financial challenges along the way. He launched a crowdfunding campaign and made multiple stops to raise funds. Support from Bruce Dickinson helped him complete the final stage of the journey.
Interestingly, he did not land in Africa during the trip, citing a lack of corporate sponsorship in Nigeria at the time.
Beyond breaking records, Odujinrin continues to push a bigger mission through Project Transcend. He wants to inspire young Africans to pursue their dreams, no matter the obstacles in their path.
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