Born in the Bahamas and raised in Florida, airline diva Rexy Rolle is creating a seat at the table for women of color in the aviation industry. The Bahamian native currently serves as the VP of Operations and General Counsel of Western Air, the largest black owned airline based out of the Bahamas.
In the beginning, her Dad was a private pilot by trade and growing up in an aviation family she got her taste of aviation very young. However, it was on a trip back to the Bahamas from Florida where they relocated, that truly sparked the idea of an airline. This was a trip, where they ended up staying at the airport for almost a day and thought that there must be a more efficient way to get to and from Nassau, the Island’s main capital and largest city in the Bahamas. With that experience they began to brainstorm solutions and over time the idea began to take form. Their ideas expanded so much so that other islands began seeking out their flight services and after that, Western Air was born.
With a law degree in hand Rexy is very educated with a focus on aviation law, aircraft financing, and currently focusing on Bahamas civil aviation. However, she did not necessarily start off with an interest in aviation as it relates to her career in law. Rexy spoke about how it would be most beneficial to turn her talents toward aviation. “I quickly recognized that it would be more beneficial for not just myself but for western air and for my family that I cater my law education toward aviation and toward business and the more I did that the more I became fascinated.” It was inevitable, she now handles a multitude of tasks with everything from managing communication between departments, handling tons of emails, calls from various vendors and mainly balancing the legal side and operational side of the business.
She also spoke about how it’s important to have balance and to be a well-rounded person with that said, Rexy is not just a boss in the aviation industry, but she is also a singer and a model. “I have to have a little bit of sugar and a little bit of spice I can’t be completely consumed all the time or else it would drive me crazy.” Yes, she is an all-around unicorn who has truly learned the art of versatility.
As you could imagine as a black woman, Rexy also faced many challenges in this industry. She discussed the challenges that she faced as a black woman in the aviation industry had mostly to do with being underestimated and people not taking you seriously. “Now the Bahamas is a predominately black nation however, if you are in the world of aviation, you are a minority at the end of the day,” she states. She went on to say how sometimes people being passive as to what they should provide you because they really don’t take you as serious. “But for the most part I really would say, money talks,” she stated. Western Air has grown substantially over the years with two passenger terminals one with its own security screening and a full-service maintenance facility. Rexy Rolle, VP of operations of Western Air, singer, model, and is unapologetically running the largest black owned private airline in the Bahamas.
