‘We Are One Community’
Air traffic controller Yahay Obeid’s youth outreach and community service in the Bronx and beyond landed him on the Arab American Foundation’s “40 Under 40” list of accomplished young Arab Americans.
By C. Troxell, FAA Communications
Yahay Obeid’s leadership and influence in the aviation community, and his extensive youth outreach, landed him on the Arab America Foundation’s 40 Under 40 list of accomplished young Arab Americans — the list’s sole representative from the aviation sector.
A Yemeni American, Obeid is a 14-year air traffic control professional for the FAA, currently serving as a supervisor at John F. Kennedy Tower in New York City, where he’s lived most of his life.
The Arab America Foundation presented Obeid with an award at their annual summit on Nov. 5 in Washington, D.C.
Founders Amal and Warren David, who in 2017 launched the designation of April as National Arab American Heritage Month, will visit Obeid next spring for a tour of JFK Tower.
“He has leadership qualities; he’s an activist; and — most of all — he has the quality of inspiring other people,” Amal said. “That’s why people gather around him.”
Obeid migrated from Yemen to the United States at age 8 and grew up in New York. He gained recognition due to his commitment to his community, leadership and activism, but he’s equally as committed to advancing aviation and developing a diverse future workforce.
Obeid successfully petitioned to have a street in the Bronx renamed to that of Yemen’s third president, Ibrahim al-Hamdi, who was assassinated in 1977 just two days before his scheduled visit to the South of Yemen to negotiate the unification of the North and South.
“He was Yemen’s JFK,” Obeid said. “Someone young, with passion, with hope, who took office in a time of crisis, who fought for civil rights. And for Yemen to get out of the civil war that it’s in now, we need someone like him.”
“Thousands of people were there listening to his message…with leaders of other ethnic groups supporting him,” said Amal, who witnessed Obeid at a parade celebrating the street-naming.
Prior to pursuing a career in air traffic control, Obeid earned a degree in airline management from Vaughn College of Aeronautics and taught courses there subsequently as an adjunct professor.
“My family has doctors and lawyers — great professions — but I wanted to do something different,” said Obeid. “That’s where aviation came in.”
After college, Obeid moved to Orlando, Florida, and earned his pilot’s license while working for the Transportation Security Administration. That’s when he got the offer from the FAA, after applying earlier that year.
“Starting at JFK was tough because, you know, here you are at one of the busiest airports in the United States,” he said. “But I made it through and was successful in training. I feel like I have the best job in the world.”
Obeid is devoted to inspiring youth to explore careers in aviation — in both air traffic control and flying. He began his outreach by organizing aviation career nights at the local community center of his Bronx neighborhood; the events generated more interest than he ever imagined. Obeid served as the air traffic control rep alongside an airline pilot, a flight instructor, an aviation college professor and a Customs and Border Patrol officer.
“I said, OK, let’s create an organization out of this and do what we’re already doing.”
Born was the Arab American Aviation Professionals, which has generated great participation and a strong social media presence since its inception.
“People love it…I showed that I took my son out flying for his intro flight when he was 9 and people were amazed,” Obeid said. “So now I usually take over a dozen students flying for their intro flights each year. I donate about half a dozen intro flights a year to students who can’t afford it.”
Additionally, over the last five years Obeid has made regular visits to schools in New York City’s most underserved communities in South Bronx, where he engages with students who had never heard of air traffic control, opening doors they never knew exist to explore new career options.
“When I tell them it’s a government job, a stable job that pays well, it really increases their interest.”
Bronx resident Izzadin Sufyan, 18, learned of the Arab American Aviation Professionals when Obeid presented at the Bronx Muslim Center.
“I was considering being a pilot, and Yahay inspired me when he said his son flew at age 9,” Sufyan said. “So, I gave it a try and it was scary but fun, to be honest… I’m exploring various careers, and Yahay has been so helpful in helping me build connections in our community.”
Obeid sits on several boards in New York, including the Bronx Muslim Center (where he led two aviation career events), the Neighborhood Initiative Development Corp., and the Morris Park Community Association, in which he is the newly elected vice president and helps lead the association in providing after-school programs and housing for those in need.
With six other members of the Yemen American community, he also created the Alliance of Yemeni American Businesses (AYAB) organization with a mission to engage, educate, and empower Yemeni American-owned small businesses in New York City. On June 23 this year, Obeid was elected as chair of Community Board 11 in the Bronx, becoming only the second Arab American to lead an NYC community board.
In his free time, Obeid enjoys taking vacations with his family, and their favorite destinations are Florida and the Caribbean.
Obeid plans to extend his 18 years of federal service as an air traffic control professional. He said “it means the world” to him and his family that he serves the U.S. government and helps the FAA continue to lead the world in aviation safety. “The aviation community is my community. From the pilot to the controller to the baggage handler, we are one community.”
