Girls in Aviation Day

Women in Aviation International (WAI) is proud to announce the awarding of a $1 million grant from the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation to strengthen the organization’s initiatives encouraging youth to pursue STEM futures through media platforms, industry partner coalitions, and cultivation of female aviation champions.

WAI’s Aviation for Girls App Continues to Bring Inspirational Material and Role Models to Girls Year-Round, for Free

Women in Aviation International’s Girls in Aviation Day (GIAD) will return to in-person events across the globe on September 25, 2021, and the Aviation for Girls App will also continue! WAI chapters and corporate members will be free to host in-person events for girls ages 8-17 this year, as their local health guidance allows. WAI will continue to offer additional virtual materials, activities, information and interviews via the Aviation for Girls app, for free across the globe, through 2021.

“WAI’s chapters, corporate members, and partners are excited to have the opportunity to introduce local girls to all the opportunities aviation has to offer, in person, again in 2021. The safety and health of our members and GIAD participants and volunteers is of the utmost importance, and GIAD event hosts will follow local COVID-19 health guidance related to limits on the size of gatherings, social separation, mask requirements, and more,” says WAI CEO Allison McKay. “Details for registration, activity kits, merchandise and event locations will be announced in the weeks to come. For now, save September 25, 2021 for Girls in Aviation Day!”

WAI to launch new Aviation for Girls App on 6 th Annual GIAD, September 26

Women in Aviation International’s Girls in Aviation Day (GIAD) will go on in 2020 – despite the global pandemic – and it will be bigger and more far-reaching than ever! WAI chapters and corporate members will not host in-person events this year, and will instead deliver a virtual experience through a new Aviation for Girls app that is free and available to all beginning Saturday, September 26, 2020.

https://www.canvas.net/browse/erau/erau-coppa/courses/aviation-is-your-future Self-Paced Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) to inspire the next generation of aviation professionals

In celebration of Women in Aviation International’s expanding Girls in Aviation Day, WAI and Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University are pleased to announce a new, self-paced Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) tailored to learners ages 8-17. The free course leverages Embry-Riddle expertise and instructional design to inspire the next generation of aviation professionals.

Massive recruitment effort to ensure aviation’s next generation workforce

With 118 individual events presented worldwide, Women in Aviation International’s October 5 Girls in Aviation Day 2019 reached approximately 20,000 attendees. Truly an international event, Girls in Aviation Day was celebrated not just in the United States but in 17 other countries in Canada and Australia as well as countries in Africa, Asia, and Europe. Girls were introduced to the career and lifestyle possibilities in aviation and aerospace through meeting role models, career panels, exploring airplanes and airports, and a host of hands-on, fun activities ranging from a sectional chart treasure hunt to making jewelry using A&P tools.

"It takes a village…” to introduce aviation careers to thousands of girls worldwide

Participation in Girls in Aviation Day has spread far beyond the vision of the event five years ago as airports, FBOs, museums, universities and corporate members have joined WAI Chapters and Corporate Members to help spread the word that aviation and aerospace offer a rich variety of career choices for young women. Girls in Aviation Day is October 5, 2019, and will be celebrated worldwide.

Six Girls in Aviation Day Events Planned for September

Six Girls in Aviation Day events in September will kick off the Girls in Aviation Day worldwide outreach, planned for October 5, 2019.

Worldwide outreach scheduled for October 5, 2019

Women in Aviation International’s network of corporate members, partners and more than 130 chapters, are making their plans for individual events for Girls in Aviation Day 2019. Girls in Aviation Day is truly a worldwide event with activities planned by WAI chapters from Australia to the Netherlands, from India to Botswana. Dozens of Girls in Aviation Day events are planned for the United States.

Individual chapter and corporate members plan their own day’s events, based on varying venues, local WAI members and availability of local resources.

Funds used for Girls in Aviation Day and Aviation for Girls magazine

Women in Aviation International received a $15,000 grant from the International Society of Transport Aircraft Training (ISTAT) Foundation, which funds educational programs that advance commercial aviation. This is the fifth year that WAI has received an ISTAT Foundation grant.

As in past years, this grant will be used to expand the distribution of Aviation for Girls magazine with the ISTAT Foundation identified as the sponsor of this year’s issue. With this grant, the number of copies printed will be increased and its distribution expanded in hard copy and digitally. The 2019 issue of Aviation for Girls will be available digitally to all Women in Aviation International members and any interested individuals at WAI.org .

Fourth successful international outreach completed

Women in Aviation International’s chapters have been surveyed, and the results show that Girls in Aviation Day 2018 accomplished its goal of introducing a record number of girls ages 8 to 17 to the career and lifestyle possibilities in the aviation world. As in past years, Girls in Aviation Day was hosted by WAI chapters (including several located on college/university campuses) with additional participation by WAI corporate members including airlines, FBOs, aviation museums, and flight schools.

On October 13, 2018, 105 chapters and corporate members held 99 separate Girls in Aviation Day events including nine international chapters, 25 corporate member events, and 23 collegiate chapters. International events were held in 15 countries including Australia, Botswana, Canada, England, France, Germany, Ghana, India, Ireland, Kenya, Netherlands, Nigeria, Spain, United States, and Zambia.

Benefits of a WAI Membership

WAI members seek to inspire and stand for encouragement, continued education, and a whole lot of fun! If you’re a lover of all things aviation and aerospace, and enjoy sharing your passion with others, we’d love to have you! Membership includes job search opportunities, scholarship opportunities, access to mentors in your industry, and much more.

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