Women in Aviation International

Tony Kioussis:

Welcome to another Asset Insight podcast, covering the aircraft ownership life cycle. I am Tony Kioussis, President of Asset Insight and your host. After serving as Vice President of the Helicopter Association International Foundation since 2015, Allison McKay joined Women in Aviation International as the Association’s CEO in 2020, and is responsible for the future strategic vision of an organization comprised of more than 14,000 members. We thought our listeners would be interested in learning more about Women in Aviation. So we invited Allison to speak with us. So welcome to the podcast, Allison.

Allison McKay:

Thank you so much for having me.

Tony Kioussis:

I’ll be the first to admit that I did not know the size and scope of the organization. So for those in the same camp, let’s start off with some background on the organization, its focus and the scope of its industry involvement.

Allison McKay:

Sure. Women in Aviation International began in 1990. It was an opportunity to bring women together. It was the first annual conference, it was in Prescott, Arizona. We were formally established in 1994 as a nonprofit organization. Today, we are the leading organization representing women of all ages, of all backgrounds, of all industry segments and professions, to get together and educate, network, mentor, and really provide support in an industry where we really don’t have the representation that we would like.

Tony Kioussis:

I understand that the 33rd Annual International Women in Aviation Conference is planned for March 17th through 19th, I think it’s in Nashville. What takes place at the annual conference and what do attendees hope to learn or accomplish by participating?

Allison McKay:

Well, first I want to say that we are really excited to get back in person. Last year, we had to modify how we bring together our attendees for conference and we were all virtual. So it’s going to be a big celebration this year, getting everybody back together. Our conference is over three days and we offer professional development and education sessions for our attendees. We specialize in getting women together and forming networking opportunities and mentoring opportunities. It’s a great reunion of women who have been in the industry, sometimes their entire career. And we’re a very small industry, so there’s lots of overlaps that we have throughout our careers.

Allison McKay:

We have an exhibit hall that houses over a hundred to 150 exhibitors from all segments of the industry. A lot of our corporate members are really in need of bolstering their workforce and so we offer those corporate members the opportunity to hold hiring briefings to our attendees and tell them a little bit about their organization, what their hiring process is, and what they’re looking for in the future workforce for their organizations. But we also celebrate those that were the pioneers in our industry and really trailblazers. And we offer a Pioneer Hall of Fame Ceremony that usually inducts between three and four women or groups of women into the Hall of Fame. And this year will be no different.

Tony Kioussis:

The scholarship history of the organization is impressive. I understand that more than a hundred scholarships will be awarded during the upcoming annual conference. Tell us about the organization’s work and capabilities in this area.

Allison McKay:

We are incredibly proud of our history with offering scholarships to our members. To date we’ve given away 14 and a half million dollars in scholarships covering a multitude of different industry segments and professions. We really have found that scholarships are changing the lives of women for the better. Funding is sometimes hard to come by in our industry. Some of our professions are very expensive to train and get into, and these scholarships are really providing the opportunity that many of our members want in their career, whether it’s entering a career segment or growing in their career and expanding their education and their opportunity. Our scholarships are not just available to women. I just want to let everybody know, 20% of our membership is men and men have just as much opportunity to receive our scholarships as women. So don’t get afraid by the Women in Aviation International name. We are equal opportunity in that regard. And like I said, our scholarships cover industries, segments of all types, all professions from engineering to maintenance, to flight training, dispatch. And then there’s also a series of professional development scholarships to keep growing in your career.

Tony Kioussis:

I couldn’t agree with you more about the cost for training in our industry, which is just huge. Most of us have had to borrow heavily in order to be able to participate in this industry. So the scholarship benefits of the organization, both for men and women, is really great. I really commend the organization for it. Girls in Aviation Day 2022, that’s planned for September 24th. I have come to learn that it brings thousands of girls around the world to their local airport museum and FBO to learn about career possibilities in aviation and aerospace. This sounds like a great program for the future of our industry. How did the effort get its start?

Allison McKay:

It started from the notion of bring your daughters to work day. And our founder, Dr. Peggy Chabrian, she thought, why don’t we bring our daughters to conference? And so that’s how it started, bringing your daughters to the Saturday, which is the last day of our conference and exposing them to our industry and all that comes with it. From there, it grew into Girls in Aviation Day. It was so successful and our membership and our corporate members wanted to expand on the event that we hosted at conference. And so now we have Girls in Aviation Day events worldwide. And in 2015, that’s when our first official Girls in Aviation Day started. And prior to the pandemic in 2019, we welcomed 20,000 girls worldwide to our Girls in Aviation Day events.

Tony Kioussis:

During the pandemic, your organization also launched the Aviation for Girls app. Tell us about the app.

Allison McKay:

In 2020, obviously we were constrained by the pandemic and not gathering in person. So we really had to pivot and think about how could we reimagine the in person Girls in Aviation Day events. And so we created an app that’s available at any of your online stores where you can download apps, and it really contains everything that you would potentially see in an in-person Girls in Aviation Day event. So we have interviews with really fantastic women that represent all career segments in our industry. We have tours of manufacturing facilities, of airports, of museums. We have activities that girls can learn some of the industry segments, some the principles of flight and different activities that they can grow in their knowledge of aviation and aerospace. And it’s usable at their own pace. So while Girls in Aviation Day in person events are typically on one day, well, this provides girls the opportunity all year long to digest and to enjoy our industry and all that it offers.

Tony Kioussis:

That’s terrific. And I’m assuming it’s open to young boys that are interested in it as well.

Allison McKay:

Oh, completely. And you will find both in person and on our app that young men are equally as interested and engaged in this industry as girls. And they benefit from the same experiences via the app and via in person events.

Tony Kioussis:

Sure. And that makes total sense. You’re a member of the FAA Women in Aviation Advisory Board. What can you share with us about this group’s work?

Allison McKay:

Yeah. This board was started in 2019. It brought together 30 incredibly experienced and dynamic women from all sectors of our industry and all career paths. And we really were tasked with the job of how do we get more women to enter the industry overall and how do we get more women to stay in our industry? We know from the figures that our representation across the majority of professions in our industry is very low. About 7% of pilots are women, two and a half percent are maintenance technicians. You’ll see the same thing in positions of leadership in organizations where women’s representation is very lacking. So we really came together and tried to identify ways that we can make the industry more welcoming to women and encourage young girls to consider professions in aviation, and then how do we help keep them in this industry? We are very close to finalizing our report of our findings and our recommendations.

Allison McKay:

And hopefully by the end of the first quarter of this year, we will have submitted our report to the FAA for review. There are many, many recommendations that cross all professions. Some are specific to professions, say pilots have very specific work related issues that we can address. But across the board is how do we create an industry that fosters growth for anybody who wants to be a part of it? The FAA also created a Youth in Aviation Task Force at the same time they created the Women in Aviation Advisory Board.

Allison McKay:

Those are industry professionals that are really focused on how do you get more young people interested in aviation and aerospace so that they have the exposure to consider a profession when they get older. Sometimes we have found that some of the underserved communities or some of the kids that don’t have aviation parents or grandparents or uncles or aunts, they don’t even understand all of the opportunities that exist in our industry. And so I’m really also looking forward to the findings of the Youth and Aviation Task Force to help us reach out to more young people. This industry is fantastic. As I’m sure you are aware, it’s ever changing, it’s evolving. The technology is fantastic. And I think the future is so bright. We need to encourage as many young people to consider this industry as possible.

Tony Kioussis:

How many people are on the advisory board?

Allison McKay:

We have 30. And I have had the pleasure of working with them for over a year now. They are some of the brightest, most dynamic women that I’ve had the pleasure to get to know. As we talk about our organization, Women in Aviation, and how we are real focused on networking and mentoring women, this advisory board that I’ve been able to be a part of is really just the embodiment of that. The network and the mentors that, I think we can all agree, all 30 of us, we have had the pleasure to get to know has really affected us in a very deep and meaningful way.

Tony Kioussis:

I love how much I learn every time I have one of these interviews. I never knew the advisory board existed. And I’m so pleased to hear your comments. So thanks for sharing those and good luck with the report and I look forward to seeing it. And thanks so much for your time. As I said to educate the listeners, many of whom are young people considering an aviation career, is there anything else you’d like people to know about Women in Aviation International, especially as it relates to the business aviation community?

Allison McKay:

I would love to just set the record straight about the perception of Women in Aviation International as being an organization for pilots. And obviously we love our pilots, but we are so much more than that. I came from a background of aviation, but supporting the industry. I’ve been in this industry my entire career, but I started out on the sales and marketing side. And I want everybody to understand that we are an organization that is for everybody who has a place in this industry. You can gain something, no matter if you are a sales professional, if you’re in HR, if you fly the planes, if you fix the planes, we are just a support network and an opportunity for us to get together and really learn from each other and grow our careers, whether you’re in business aviation. I spent some time in the helicopter segment of the industry, whether you fly fixed or a rotor, we are an organization that is here to support you in your career goals.

Tony Kioussis:

This has been another Asset Insight podcast covering the aircraft ownership life cycle. Please visit our ever-growing podcast library at assetinsightpodcast.com and select from any number of topics discussed with business aviation industry experts. This is Tony Kioussis and as always, thank you for listening.