FLY WOMEN - Inspiring Young Women to Soar

Less than 7% of commercial pilots and 3% of aircraft maintenance technicians in the United States are women. This stark reality was the motivation for JetBlue’s Fly Like a Girl event, hosted by the JetBlue Foundation and the Women in Flight crewmember resource group.

More than 70 young girls from the local community are invited every year to meet a cross-section of JetBlue crewmembers— all women and see first-hand what it is like to work in aviation industry. At JetBlue’s Hangar, the girls rotate between sessions, with crewmembers who offer insight into their roles: In the Air, On the Ground and In Between. Attendees are invited to board an Airbus 321 aircraft, inspect the engine and even hop into the Captain’s seat.

“I feel inspired,” said Kimberly McCommon, a First Office at JetBlue. “I feel like I’m doing the job that was presented to me because I know there are not that many women in aviation. The fact that these girls can see me and know they can aspire to do what I do—that excites me and makes me happy… I fly like a girl and so can you.”