Features
Innovations
UAVs
Festivities set for second annual Woman of Aviation week
January 30, 2012 By Carey Fredericks
Jan. 30, 2012, Vancouver - From 62° of latitude North in Yellowknife, to 38° of latitude South in Geelong, Australia, and within hundreds of degrees of longitude, girls and women are about to discover that aviation is for them too during the second annual Women Of Aviation Worldwide Week celebration, March 5 through March 11.
Fly-It-Forward events designed to awake a passion for flying in the hearts of girls and women by taking them on a short flight are planned across the world. Once again, the coveted "Most Female Pilot Friendly Airport Worldwide" award currently held by the Frederick Airport Community in Maryland will be awarded to the airport community who introduces the most girls and women to flying during the week.
Additional awards will be granted in the following categories: Most Dedicated Female Pilot Worldwide, Most Dedicated Female Flight Instructor Worldwide, Most Supportive Male Pilot Worldwide, and Most Supportive Flight Instructor Worldwide.
Participants will be eligible for more than U.S. $11,000 worth of prizes thanks to the support of our pro-diversity sponsors, Airbus, Sennheiser, Goldstripes Aviation, AOPA, Baron Services, Aircraft Spruce, OSRM, Powder Puff Pilot, Windtee, Barry Schiff, FFPULM, and many more local sponsors.
In honor of the centennial of the first crossing of the English Channel by a woman pilot, Harriet Quimby, Headcorn Aerodrome, U.K., and Le Touquet Airport, France, are co-hosting the "Across the Channel: Women Unifying Nation" event on March 10. Pilots from across Europe and the United States plan to introduce at least 100 girls and women to flying over the English Channel.
Pilots across the United States are invited to introduce girls and women to flying at 100 different airports on March 10 to join the celebration.
2012 also marks the centennial of the first woman pilot seaplane pilot worldwide, Hélène Dutrieu. To mark that centennial, the Women Of Aviation Worldwide are encouraging seaplane pilots around the world to introduce a record number of girls and women to flying using a seaplane.
The celebration of Women Of Aviation Worldwide Week began in 2011 as the world celebrated the 100th anniversary of International Women’s Day. Held annually during the week including March 8, which marks International Women’s Day and the anniversary of the issuance of the first female pilot license worldwide, Women Of Aviation Worldwide Week aims to foster diversity in aviation by celebrating women’s history, raising awareness of aviation’s opportunities among girls and women, and shaping the future by introducing girls and women to aviation through industry-wide collaboration.
