When you think of getting a group of pilots, engineers and businesspeople together, tears might not be what you’d expect. But the first WIAF elicited exactly that, along with cheers, hugs and promises of mutual support.
Though the event got off to a slow start, before long more than 80 female aviators, aviation professionals and young women with an interest in the sector packed the media centre theatre for the event, which was organised in association with Bahrain International Air Show.
Bahrain’s Minister of Transportation and Telecommunications, HE Shaikh Kamal bin Ahmed, showed his support with an interview prior to the forum as well as a front-row seat on the day.
Rania Al-Jaraf, of the Supreme Council for Women, introduced the forum and told attendees that Bahrain is serious about women’s development – giving the first suggestion of what was to become the theme of the event; the belief that women can do anything they set their minds to.
Moderator Alia Twal, a pilot with Royal Jordanian Airlines, introduced an impressive panel comprised of Hend Alawadhi, Bahrain’s first woman aircraft engineer; Captain Maisa Hazeem, the first female Bahraini pilot and now chief of Aviation Safety Rules and Regulations with the Kingdom’s Civil Aviation Authority; Nora Rashed AlBaker, senior financial analyst at Saudi Arabia’s General Authority for Civil Aviation; Martyna Al-Qassab, glider pilot and founder of Yalla Banat, the region’s biggest women’s automotive event; and Salma Al Baloushi, first Emirati pilot.
And what an incredibly emotive, honest, brave and passionate group they turned out to be. Salma’s emotional description of the wrench of leaving her new baby just 45 days after giving birth to get back in the cockpit, brought gasps and calls of encouragement as she made an impassioned plea for airlines to take the needs of female workers seriously.
One audience member, who turned out to be a flight instructor in the UAE, told of her own journey – a gap of almost 20 years between her children as she didn’t feel that, at that time, she could combine flying and motherhood – she and Salma hugged over their shared experience.
Several of the panelists said they had initially faced opposition from their families and speaker Suaad Al Shamsi called on airlines and aircraft companies to encourage concerned parents to come and see where their daughters will be working, a suggestion that attracted strong support from the audience members.
Each of the panelists answered questions about their journey in aviation and the overwhelming theme was the recognition of how regional governments are making valuable support available but further education is needed to ensure girls and young women are aware of the opportunities available to them within the aviation sector.
In the audience were women from across the sector ranging from flyers to lawyers to air traffic control and financial and insurance experts. All of whom welcomed the opportunity to hear other women’s experiences, network and plan for future collaborations — a lot of numbers were swapped.
Organiser, George Middleton, of Red House Marketing, parent company of Woman This Month, said: “It has been a privilege to be here today amongst such an inspiring group of women. I am very grateful to His Excellency, the Minister, and to Yousef Al Mahmood at Bahrain International Airshow for the opportunity to stage this event and for their support in making it happen. The response has been far stronger than expected, which shows there is a need for something like this and many of the women involved have said they want us to return at the next airshow.”
