Air New Zealand is running a historic all-female flight from Auckland to Queenstown today to mark International Women's Day. Photo / Supplied
Air New Zealand is running a historic all-female flight from Auckland to Queenstown today to mark International Women's Day. Photo / Supplied
Air New Zealand is pushing for greater gender equality in aviation as the airline marks International Women’s Day with a groundbreaking all-female flight.
In a historic moment in New Zealand’s aviation history, Flight NZ611 from Auckland will land in Queenstown at 8.35am today.
Women will fill the roles of captain,first officer and cabin crew on board the special flight.
On the ground at Queenstown Airport, the flight will also be supported by female engineers, flight planners, air traffic control and operational staff.
The airline’s general manager airports, Kate Boyer, said the initiative is intended to highlight and celebrate the “incredible” women working in the industry.
“Every day, women are already working across every part of the aviation system, and when those roles are visible, the next generation sees it and thinks ‘that could be me’.”
Some 41% of the aviation workforce is women but they are consistently under-represented in roles across the sector.
Only 8.97% of Air New Zealand’s planes are flown by women, and the statistics are worse for positions that involve specialised technical training, with 2% of the country’s maintenance engineers being female.
“If we want a resilient aviation workforce for the decades ahead, we need to broaden who sees a place for themselves in this industry and build clear pathways to support women in making aviation a viable long-term career,” Boyer said.
Women are under-represented in certain roles across the aviation sector, particularly those that require long-term technical training. Photo / Air New Zealand
A lack of emphasis on technical and operational roles is a major bar to improving representation in the sector, New Zealand Association of Women in Aviation (NZAWA) president Simone Boult said.
“Aviation is often seen through the lens of the flight deck, but in reality, pilots are the end-users of an enormous feat of organisation that involves engineers, planners, air traffic controllers, safety specialists, dispatchers and many others.”
Minister for Women Nicola Grigg hoped today’s special flight would succeed in showcasing these often-unnoticed jobs.
“When women are visible in leadership and technical positions, it unlocks career pathways and shapes how young people view their future and their place in it.”
While Grigg would have “loved” to be on the flight herself, she instead wished the air crew well with a cheerful “go girls!”
But Boult said support across aviation’s “long, complex career pathways” remains a particular challenge for women.
Air New Zealand acquired a Gender Tick in 2019 and has various programmes designed to encourage women to enter the industry, including the Women Inspiring the Next Generation (Wings) Network and the Women in Supply Chain and Engineering (Wise) Network.
Broader schemes such as the Mangōpare Pilot Cadetship support people from diverse backgrounds to become pilots, offering an accelerated training pathway.
Each step towards progress is important and needs to be sustained, Boult said.
“If aviation is going to solve its skills challenges and build a resilient future, it needs to reflect the world it serves. That starts by showing what’s possible.”
