Female pilot / captain experience?

Old Dec 22, 2006, 7:02 am
  #16  
 
Join Date: Aug 2003
Location: London, UK
Programs: BA Gold, BD Gold, PC Ambassador, SPG Gold
Posts: 4,001
I had a female captain and first officer on my first 2-4-1 when I went to Vancouver. Although there was a third flight crew member who was male.

Agree with Jenbel though. The fact that it's noteworthy shows that it's still a male dominated profession. And not just male dominated but white male dominated. How many black captains does BA have?
PhilH is offline  
Old Dec 22, 2006, 7:16 am
  #17  
 
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: Philly
Programs: AA, BA, NH, TP
Posts: 734
I had a female FO on the Concorde in the early 90's.
fatmac70 is online now  
Old Dec 22, 2006, 7:32 am
  #18  
 
Join Date: Oct 2005
Location: MCO
Programs: BAEC Silver, Amex Bonvoy, Chase BA
Posts: 360
Originally Posted by More Champagne Sir?
Do the female pilots park the planes too?

Back in the early 90's was on a charter flight to MCO with a female captain. I knew the F/O and spent some of the journey up front. He was making the PA announcements so the passengers weren't aware that it was a female captain. Due to very strong winter winds we had to make a fuel stop in Gander. There were a couple of guys I knew on the flight as well so I mentioned it was a female captain and there reaction was the same as yours MCS? Didn't mind her flying but don't let her park it. Well on arrival into MCO I was watching as she missed the gate and the bemused marshaller waiving frantically trying to get her attention. Had to do a 180 to get back around and onto stand!
NatsDad is offline  
Old Dec 22, 2006, 7:43 am
  #19  
 
Join Date: Sep 2005
Programs: BA
Posts: 3,890
Originally Posted by NatsDad
Well on arrival into MCO I was watching as she missed the gate and the bemused marshaller waiving frantically trying to get her attention. Had to do a 180 to get back around and onto stand!
LOL!! ^^

Just like when they try and park here in Golders Green. I'm sure GG must be the only place where double yellow line = double parking only!
More Champagne Sir? is offline  
Old Dec 22, 2006, 8:52 am
  #20  
 
Join Date: Jul 2003
Location: Scotland
Programs: BA Blue.
Posts: 986
Originally Posted by NatsDad
He was making the PA announcements so the passengers weren't aware that it was a female captain.
In all seriousness - would the average person really care? Obviosuly in a male dominated industry there will always be jokes, etc about direction, parking, etc.
blawson is offline  
Old Dec 22, 2006, 9:02 am
  #21  
FlyerTalk Evangelist
 
Join Date: Jul 2002
Location: SE1, London
Posts: 23,362
On longhaul Nigel Fotherington-Smythe and his ilk still seem to dominate. On shorthaul female cockpit crew seem pretty run of the mill now, well past the note-worthy point.

I cannot recall ever seeing a Black/Asian member of cockpit crew on BA.
Swanhunter is online now  
Old Dec 22, 2006, 9:16 am
  #22  
 
Join Date: Oct 2005
Location: MCO
Programs: BAEC Silver, Amex Bonvoy, Chase BA
Posts: 360
I do know that one of the first female BA pilots was the wife of the Captain on the Manchester 737 disaster.
NatsDad is offline  
Old Dec 22, 2006, 9:34 am
  #23  
 
Join Date: Feb 2003
Posts: 920
Originally Posted by PhilH
And not just male dominated but white male dominated. How many black captains does BA have?

I know of two, presumably there are more. I also know of a naturalised Iraqi and a Lebanese. BA go out of their way (too far out of their way in some peoples view) to recruit females and minority groups. They even funded studies some years back into why minority groups didn't apply in signifcant numbers to BAs pilot training scheme. The results revealed that it wasn't that applicants thought they would be disadvantaged by their race but that the vast majority of those who had the necessary qualifications wanted to do a better job than flying a plane.
Panic Stations is offline  
Old Dec 22, 2006, 10:20 am
  #24  
 
Join Date: Apr 2006
Location: MAN
Programs: F
Posts: 2,898
On every single GLA-BRR-GLA flight I have been on (4), BOTH the co-pilot AND the CSD have been female. Remarkable.
redshift27 is offline  
Old Dec 22, 2006, 10:26 am
  #25  
FlyerTalk Evangelist
 
Join Date: Aug 2002
Location: London
Programs: Mucci. Nothing else matters.
Posts: 38,642
Originally Posted by redshift27
On every single GLA-BRR-GLA flight I have been on (4), BOTH the co-pilot AND the CSD have been female. Remarkable.
Globaliser is offline  
Old Dec 22, 2006, 11:19 am
  #26  
 
Join Date: Apr 2002
Location: Edinburgh UK
Programs: BA Silver, HHonours Gold, Mucci of Pucci, Oyster Card, Nectar Card, Father's Day Card
Posts: 9,372
Remember going to Spain on Holiday circa 1977 with my parents. Got on a Dan Air BAC111 - pilot introduced herself as Yvonne Sintes - nearly every man on the plane wanted to get off!!

Apparantly she was one of the first female pilots in the UK - married a Spaniard - can't remember her maiden name.
edi-traveller is offline  
Old Dec 22, 2006, 11:22 am
  #27  
 
Join Date: Apr 2002
Location: Edinburgh UK
Programs: BA Silver, HHonours Gold, Mucci of Pucci, Oyster Card, Nectar Card, Father's Day Card
Posts: 9,372
Originally Posted by edi-traveller
Remember going to Spain on Holiday circa 1977 with my parents. Got on a Dan Air BAC111 - pilot introduced herself as Yvonne Sintes - nearly every man on the plane wanted to get off!!

Apparantly she was one of the first female pilots in the UK - married a Spaniard - can't remember her maiden name.
Quoting myself - managed to find out about her by googling:

Dan-Air was one of the first UK-based airlines to employ female pilots with up to four ladies among its 450-strong pilot community during the second half of the 1970s. [2] It was also the first UK airline to have a female pilot in command of jet aircraft, a Mrs. Yvonne Sintes, who became one of Dan-Air's BAC 1-11 captains in 1975. [3] She regularly sat in the left-hand seat of the airline's BAC 1-11s and De Havilland Comets until her retirement in 1980.
edi-traveller is offline  
Old Dec 22, 2006, 12:21 pm
  #28  
 
Join Date: Jul 2005
Location: 64K or 2A
Programs: BA LT Gold, HH Diamond
Posts: 785
Well, seeing as everyone is making a deal of the parking, my first awareness of a lady BA captain was when she managed to park a 747 on a flight from the Seychelles (they were the days....) at the wrong gate at T4. To be fair though, we didn't hit anything. And of course no male pilot has ever parked at the wrong gate.
r22r44bell47 is offline  
Old Dec 22, 2006, 12:44 pm
  #29  
 
Join Date: Feb 2006
Location: UK
Programs: MUCCI, British Airways Executive Club Gold
Posts: 1,790
I've got a female friend who flies 747s for BA - she's a captain and great!!!
tom139 is offline  
Old Feb 8, 2007, 5:55 pm
  #30  
FlyerTalk Evangelist
 
Join Date: Dec 2004
Posts: 11,924
When they said we had an all female crew today, I didn't realise they meant ALL female.

The pilot and co-pilot were both girlies, who looked like they were still at sixth form.

The Purser (Crew Manager?), Joan, was like an old aunt - very mothering, but smelt of mothballs.

One girl at the back looked like Vickie Pollard's sister, with a sniffle, and kept wiping her nose on her sleeve the whole time.

And the other girl at the back, who spoke bad English with a heavy East European accent (and guess who did the safety briefing).

Nothing wrong with this of course.
Smirnoff is offline  

Thread Tools
Search this Thread

Contact Us - Manage Preferences - Archive - Advertising - Cookie Policy - Privacy Statement - Terms of Service -

This site is owned, operated, and maintained by MH Sub I, LLC dba Internet Brands. Copyright © 2024 MH Sub I, LLC dba Internet Brands. All rights reserved. Designated trademarks are the property of their respective owners.