Women as Aircraft Maintenance Engineers

As the field of Aircraft Maintenance Engineering continuous to grow more number of women are becoming the part of this industry. The existing female workforce urging others to join the field which was till now considered to be male dominant. This gender balance is something which organizations like Association for Women in Aviation Maintenance, Women in Aviation International etc. are trying to address. Though quite a few members still find the Industry hostile, yet there are many Airlines which are more than welcoming to female engineers.

If we compare the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region to other countries, UAE has a much greater number of Women employees in Aviation. They work in various roles like pilots, captains, aircraft engineers, maintenance technicians, air traffic controller and many such jobs. MENA region is on a growth track and witnessing a big growth in passenger traffic. Most of the airlines are continuously expanding their aircraft capacity. In 2016, the UAE became the first country in the world to have an all women-operated airline service. This is the best time for women to build a successful career in aviation.

We have come a long way when it comes to having women working in all sectors of the aviation industry in various roles including maintenance engineering. However, there are some of the great women who actually paved the way for the women of today. Some of these lovely ladies are:

Phoebe Omlie: The first female to receive an airplane mechanic license. She was also the first female to be appointed to a federal position in the aviation field.

Elsie Macgill: The world’s first aircraft designer. Also known as ‘queen of hurricanes’, she worked as an aeronautical engineer during World War 2.

Emma Lilian Todd:  Her love for mechanical devices led her to become a self-taught inventor who is considered the first woman in the world to help design aircraft.

Mervat Sultan: One of the first Arab women to obtain a flight dispatcher’s license and a co-founder and the President of the Middle East chapter of Women in Aviation International.

Salma Al Baloushi: The first Emirati woman to graduate from Etihad’s cadet programme for co-pilots.

Maryam Al Kuwaiti: The 25-year-old engineer is one of the first Emirati women who is an integral part of a project to develop the region’s first 3D-printed aircraft interior parts

Without these path-breaking achievements by these ladies, aviation would simply just not be the same.