While most passengers see only the polished smile and practiced safety demonstration, Nanyi John sees something deeper: the cognitive architecture that determines whether a flight attendant will freeze or act decisively when seconds matter most.
After nearly a decade in aviation spanning roles from flight attendant to cabin crew instructor John has emerged as one of Nigeria’s most thoughtful voices on what she calls “the next frontier of aviation safety”: training the mind, not just the manual.
John’s journey through African aviation reads like a map of the continent’s airspace itself. She served as a flight attendant with Westlink Airlines in Abuja from 2016 to 2020, then with ATT Aviation in Lagos from 2022 to 2023, before transitioning into instruction first with Delfrelision in Ikeja, and currently as Cabin Crew Instructor at Aero Skye School of Aviation in Benin City, where she has served since January 2024.
Traditional aviation training has long focused on physical drills, emergency procedures, and regulatory compliance essential elements that John does not dismiss. But her instructional philosophy pushes further, into territory that many training programs have yet to explore systematically.
John’s approach centers on what he terms “cognitive readiness” equipping cabin crew not just with knowledge, but with the mental frameworks to make sound decisions under stress, fatigue, and emotional pressure. This means teaching trainees to understand their own thinking processes, recognise when cognitive load is affecting judgment, and deploy practical strategies to compensate.
Her methodology shifts from outcome-based teaching (“Did you choose the correct procedure?”) to process-based learning (“How did you assess the situation? What cues did you prioritize?”). The distinction may sound academic, but its implications are profound: it transforms compliance training into critical thinking development.
With credentials including a Training Instructors Course from Train Air Plus in Zaria, a recently completed Training Developer Course, and an MBA in Business Administration from Nexford University (expected February 2025) to complement her earlier degrees in Mass Communication and International Relations, John brings both frontline experience and pedagogical sophistication to her work.
She is particularly focused on a challenge facing aviation across the continent: the need to adapt global training standards to African operational realities.
“Much of our training architecture in Africa is inherited,” John observes. “Imported frameworks, foreign manuals, standardized approaches designed for environments with different operational pressures. While global standards are essential, blind replication is not.”
Her argument is that passenger behavior patterns, infrastructure constraints, cultural dynamics, and security considerations create unique cognitive demands on African cabin crews demands that one-size-fits-all training models may not adequately address.
John’s vision extends beyond her own classroom. He advocates for a fundamental reimagining of instructor development across the industry, arguing that effective aviation educators need training not just in procedures, but in learning psychology, stress behavior, and adult education principles.
“An instructor is not just transferring knowledge,” she says. “They are shaping how future crew members think under pressure.”
This perspective positions her among a new generation of African aviation professionals who see the continent’s rapid growth not merely as a logistical challenge, but as an opportunity to build training ecosystems that prioritize mental readiness alongside technical competence.
As African aviation continues its expansion with projections showing the continent will account for increasing shares of global passenger growth John’s emphasis on cognitive training addresses a critical question: Are we preparing aviation professionals who can think as skillfully as they act?
Her answer, delivered through daily instruction at Aero Skye and articulated in his broader advocacy for training reform, is unambiguous: Africa’s aviation future depends not on copying yesterday’s models, but on building new ones that reflect where the industry is heading.
“Technology will continue to advance. Aircraft will become smarter. Systems will become more automated,” John concludes. “But the human mind will remain the final safety layer. Training the body without training the mind is no longer sufficient.”
Ifeoma Okeke-Korieocha is the Aviation Correspondent at BusinessDay Media Limited, publishers of BusinessDay Newspapers.
She is also the Deputy Editor, BusinessDay Weekender Magazine, the Saturday Weekend edition of BusinessDay.
She holds a BSC in Mass Communication from the prestigious University of Nigeria, Nsukka and a Masters degree in Marketing at the University of Lagos.
As the lead writer on the aviation desk, Ifeoma is responsible and in charge of the three weekly aviation and travel pages in BusinessDay and BDSunday. She also overseas and edits all pages of BusinessDay Saturday Weekender.
She has written various investigative, features and news stories in aviation and business related issues and has been severally nominated for award in the category of Aviation Writer of the Year by the Nigeria Media Nite-Out awards; one of the Nigeria’s most prestigious media awards ceremonies.
Ifeoma is a one-time winner of the
prestigious Nigeria Media Merit Award under the ‘Aviation Writer of the Year’ Category.
She is the 2025 Eloy Award winner under the Print Media Journalist category.
She has undergone several journalism trainings by various prestigious organisations.
Ifeoma is also a fellow of the Female Reporters Leadership Fellowship of the Wole Soyinka Centre for Investigative Journalism.
