Aer Lingus has marked International Women’s Day as an all-female team prepared and staffed a flight from Dublin to London.
Captain Louise Gilroy and First Officer Amy Cunningham led the all-female cabin crew through the skies to Heathrow Airport.
Flight EI162 was also prepared for take-off by an exclusively female team, which included key operational roles such as Turnaround Coordinator, Flight Operations Officer, Dublin Airport Duty Manger and Guest Service Agents.
“In 1977 Grainne Cronin was the first woman to be selected as a pilot by Aer Lingus and became Aer Lingus’ first female Captain. Now 40 years later, almost 10% of our pilots in Aer Lingus are female,” said Captain Louise Gilroy.
“Increasing diversity in aviation is essential to ensure that our business can adapt to change.
“On International Women's Day I feel inspired by the talented and confident young women who are now joining the industry. We need more women in visible leadership positions, who will challenge the norms and find new ways of working if our industry is to keep apace with change.”
Air Lingus employs over 2,000 women across all areas of the airline.
Meanwhile, an easyJet flight with a totally female crew also took off from Gatwick to celebrate International Women’s Day.
The flight was fully operated and prepared by female staff, including boarding agents, ground ops, the turn co-ordinator and caterers.
The flight’s 27-year-old captain, Kate McWilliams, said: “Only about 5% are female pilots, so today is a great opportunity for us to promote female pilots in aviation to try and encourage more young ladies to get into the industry.”