Could Scots aviation pioneer inspire more women flyers?

One of the first female commercial airline pilots was a Scot – yet few will have even heard of aviation pioneer Winnie Drinkwater.

In 1930, at age 17, Winnie Drinkwater started taking flying lessons. She would go on to secure a licence as a pilot, a commercial pilot and an engineer all by the time she was 20 years old.

Her achievements in the aviation industry at that time are all the more significant due to the very small number of women in the field.

But how much has changed since Winnie’s flying days in the 1930s?

Here in the UK, latest figures from the Civil Aviation Authority put the numbers of female airline pilots at about 6.5%.

Senior First Officer and Trustee for Aviation In Reach Neema Soni-Robertson, stresses the need for representation and diversity within the industry.

“You can’t be what you can’t see,” says Neema.

Her work with Aviation In Reach aims to empower individuals from less represented demographics to reach their aviation career goals.

Private pilot Rebecca Wallace, who aspires to have a career in commercial aviation, would like to see more role models in the field.

“I would love one day that we don’t say ‘female pilot’. We just say ‘pilot’,” says Rebecca.

Iain Brown, curator at the National Museum of Flight, thinks Winnie Drinkwater’s story could inspire young people interested in aviation if more people knew her story.

“As a nation, we’ve pretty much forgotten all about her, and that just doesn’t seem right, when she could inspire so many young people to achieve so much.”

Reporting by Gillian Sharpe.

Video by Zara Weir.