For decades, society has viewed aviation as a man’s career, leading to a worrying trend of women’s underrepresentation in the industry.
However, like in any other occupation, women bring loads of value including enhanced safety and innovation in aviation.
For the sector to benefit from the value women add to the profession there is a need for a deliberate change in workplace culture in the aviation industry.
Born in a family of all girls, Maseka Semo-Olesi Kithinji never dreamt of working in the aviation industry, let alone becoming a pilot.
“As a child, I knew that anything aviation was for the rich. It was never my childhood dream. However, my interest and passion were sparked in high school through exposure from a friend who wanted to be in aeronautical engineering,” says Ms Maseka.
Her interest, however, hung on the balance. Coming from a humble background, her parents could not raise the high fees required for the aviation course.
She was then left with studying a Bachelor of Laws (LLB) at Riara University as the only option.
A Kenya Airways pilot is set to receive the prestigious Africa Travel Awards 2009 as the first female African Airline Captain. PHOTO | NMG
“While still studying law, an opportunity presented itself. I enrolled for an aviation course at 99’s Flying School at Wilson Airport then I received my Private Pilot Licence in 2017,” says Ms Maseka.
She is the first female weight-shift microlight pilot in Kenya. Her vision is to serve as a humanitarian pilot and serve communities in Africa.
She is currently flying under East Africa Whale Shark Trust as a volunteer conservation pilot.
Despite her resilience, she acknowledges stumbling on blocks to get to where she is, which she says motivated her to start the Girls in Aviation foundation to encourage young women and girls to join the industry.
Stephanie Mueni says her story is different.
“Growing up I used to love aircraft. I remember my parents bought me a toy aircraft and it would never leave my hand. I also loved playing with paper planes,” she says.
The 27-year-old started her aviation journey in high school where she registered for a technology subject that she says blew her mind.
“I took aviation as my tech subject all through high school. That’s when I knew aviation has a broad table when it comes to career choices. I wrote on my dream board that I would do aeronautical engineering.
“After high school, I joined the Trans Eastern Airlines Aviation College for my aeronautical engineering programme,” she says.
Many obstacles
Later, Ms Mueni worked as a tutor at the college for two years before qualifying for field work despite facing many obstacles. She is now one of the aeronautical engineers at Skyward Express.
“Inasmuch as men dominate the field, women strive to work twice as much to prove you can do it too,” she says.
Stephanie Mueni, an aeronautical engineer at Skyward Express. PHOTO | NMG
For instance, as of July 2021, female employees at Kenya Airways (KQ) made up 39.3 per cent of the workforce with 1,370 women out of the 3,482 employees.
As part of the airline’s strategy to increase the number of women in underrepresented jobs such as pilots, technical and operations, KQ continues to train women under the International Air Transport Association’s Women in Leadership development training.
“I was a curious girl, and still I am. It’s the things that are complex, intricate that attract my attention,” says 36-year-old Juliet Mutua, a technician at Kenya Airways.
“Airshows were frequent when I was growing up. My parents always took us to Wilson Airport for adventure. The sight of something human-made that could defy gravity safely felt like home,” she says
She says aviation was her dream from the word go. Watching from the side was not enough. However, she says she did not imagine there was more to aviation than just flying.
“I fell in love with engineering. I was so blessed to study a three-year diploma in aeronautical engineering at Skypath Aviation College based at Wilson Airport,” says Ms Mutua.
Juliet Mutua. PHOTO | NMG
Before landing her dream job, she says she had to knock on many doors.
After two-and-a-half years of attachment where she worked on fixed wings and helicopters, she landed her first job at Mission Aviation Fellowship as an aircraft technician.
“What I like most about my job is the opportunity to travel the world. The exposure and satisfaction it gives you are on another level. What I like least is the constant trying to balance my time and energy between my job, family and friends. You win some, you lose some,” says Ms Mutua.
A female pilot. PHOTO | POOL
Nagging feeling
She cites numerous hurdles in the industry, such as the nagging feeling of being incompetent and having to work twice as hard to match her male counterparts, mistreatment and sexual harassment.
The 2021 Women in Aviation Workforce Report revealed that women make up less than 20 per cent of most aviation occupations and “over a span of 60 years, the percentage of women commercial pilots has changed at a rate of about one per cent a decade while mechanics have increased at about half that rate.
So why are women under-represented in aviation?
Grace Kalekye, a flight dispatcher and member of the Women in Aviation foundation, says negative workplace culture, including implicit bias, discrimination and sexual harassment, suppresses the number of women in the industry.
The widespread stereotype that pursuing a career as a pilot is a preserve of men also puts women off. Also, the irregular work schedule often creates additional woes for women, especially mothers.
Gender stereotypes
In addition, there are also economic barriers that can be equally difficult to surmount. For example, training to become a pilot is lengthy and expensive, denying women an opportunity to pursue aviation-related careers.
While pre-conceived perceptions in society about individuals’ capabilities and suitability to certain roles are starting to change, there is still more that could be done to challenge the long-held gender stereotypes that remain in the industry and open up new opportunities for women.
“Focus on the positive side. Always be aggressive to know what you want to, as you try to interact also with your male counterparts. Voicing your opinion is not a crime. Quite a number of them are supportive,” says Ms Kalekye.
