In the lead-up to International Women’s Day, Aer Lingus hosted a special event at Dublin Airport to showcase career opportunities for women in aviation. The airline welcomed 200 career guidance counsellors and 80 aviation students to its base, aiming to inspire the next generation of female professionals in the industry.
The event, backed by DAA (the operator of Dublin and Cork airports), the Irish Aviation Authority (IAA), and AirNav Ireland, provided an immersive experience for attendees. Career guidance counsellors from the Institute of Guidance Counsellors engaged with female aviation professionals across a range of roles, encouraging more young women to consider a future in the sector.
As part of the event, participants took part in a one-hour flight experience on an Aer Lingus A330 aircraft, crewed entirely by women. They also received a behind-the-scenes tour of the airline’s maintenance and engineering operations at Hangar 6. The event featured a keynote address from Aer Lingus CEO Lynne Embleton, as well as insightful Q&A sessions with women working across various areas of the industry, including operations, air traffic control, and engineering.
Alongside these experiences, a careers fair provided valuable information on roles in engineering, piloting, cabin crew, ground operations, and support functions such as finance, fleet management, and network planning. The fair aimed to spark interest in aviation careers and highlight the diverse pathways available.
Speaking at the event, Lynne Embleton, CEO of Aer Lingus, emphasised the need to break down barriers for women in the industry. “There’s huge opportunity for more women to pursue careers in the aviation sector here in Ireland. Our ambition today is to bring to life for Irish career guidance counsellors the breadth of opportunities that are available in aviation. The career guidance counsellors can then in turn help inform the career paths of the next generation of women. There’s no role in aviation that is unavailable to women and it’s important we all play a part in helping to break down the barriers which have led to underrepresentation of females in many areas of the industry. Aviation in Ireland needs a strong pipeline of talent from a range of backgrounds to drive its future success and women will have a critical role to play in this.”
Among those sharing their experiences was Ellen Canny, an apprentice engineer with Aer Lingus. Reflecting on her journey, she said: “Working as an aircraft engineer wasn’t something I considered growing up but when I saw Aer Lingus was looking for applications for its apprenticeship programme, I really liked the idea that I could go to college and get on-the-job training at the same time. It doesn’t matter what gender you are on our team, it’s like a family, we all look out for and support each other. It’s a busy and challenging role but one that I really enjoy, and have great opportunities to travel.”
As the aviation industry looks towards the future, initiatives like this will be key in ensuring a more balanced workforce. By opening doors and creating opportunities, Aer Lingus and its partners are not only inspiring the next generation but also shaping a more inclusive and dynamic sector for years to come.
About Aer Lingus
Aer Lingus is the Irish flag carrier, founded in 1936. Aer Lingus operates over 100 routes from Dublin, Cork, Shannon and Knock to Europe, the UK and North America. Reaffirming its commitment to North America, the airline will operate 24 transatlantic routes in 2025 from Dublin, Shannon and Manchester, UK to North America and the Caribbean. Aer Lingus is a 4-star airline, awarded by Skytrax, the international air transport rating organisation. Aer Lingus is a member of International Airlines Group (IAG), one of the world’s largest airline groups. As part of IAG, Aer Lingus has pledged to achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2050 and has committed to powering 10% of its flights using sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) by 2030.
For more information on Aer Lingus flights and offers, visit www.aerlingus.com
