Jetstar Works to Boost Number of Women in Engineering

Taylah Smith, 20, doesn't fit the stereotypical image of an avionics engineer. But the second-year apprentice at Jetstar's Newcastle engineering facility says she loves her job.

"It is such a unique and specialised field," she says. "Most people, when I tell them what I do, they have no idea and their jaw drops."

Ms Smith, who has been interested in engineering since she was at school, is one of four female apprentices at the low-cost airline's engineering facility in Newcastle. She works 11-hour day or night shifts on a four day on/four day off basis to ensure the aircraft keep flying safely.

Jetstar, which unusually for the aviation industry has a female chief executive, Jayne Hrdlicka, and a female chief pilot, Captain Georgina Sutton, has been working hard to recruit more women in traditionally male-dominated fields.

For the past year, it has had a policy in place to aim for an even split between male and female candidates for interviews and shortlisted for jobs. If that cannot be achieved in the event nobody from a specific gender applied or met critical technical and safety qualifications, an explanation must be provided.

Jetstar's efforts to increase gender diversity were recognised on Thursday evening, when industry group Aviation/Aerospace Australia named it as the award winner in the Outstanding Strategy for Diversity Category at its 2016 Airspace Awards.

Aviation/Aerospace Australia chief executive Ken McLean said progressive airlines around the world had abandoned the position of having women in the cabin and men in the cockpit.

"Incentives and quotas have helped reverse this situation," he said. "The challenge now is to ensure women are well represented in the technical aspects of aviation, such as maintenance, dispatch and piloting."

In NSW, less than 1 per cent of aircraft maintenance engineers are female, making them even rarer than female pilots. In Australia, women comprise around 5 to 10 per cent of pilots at the major airlines, varying by carrier.

Ms Hrdlicka said that, from Jetstar's point of view, striving for better diversity in its pilot and engineering ranks was a "no-brainer".

"I've never understood why an airline would overlook half the population when searching for the very best talent to fly, service and maintain their aircraft," she said.

The Newcastle facility remains male-dominated, with the female apprentices comprising only 5 per cent of the workforce. But Ms Smith said she had not had problems integrating into a male-dominated environment and hoped more women would follow in her footsteps.

When she completes her four-year apprenticeship she will be qualified as an aircraft maintenance engineer. Once that is complete, she could choose to pursue the qualification of becoming a licensed aircraft maintenance engineer.

"There are plenty of options," she said. "You can just keep going and go further up the ladder."

Image: Taylah Smith (right) with fellow Jetstar engineering apprentices Maddy Candy and Ashley Crequer. 
Photo: Brock Perks

Jamie Freed | SMH
http://www.smh.com.au/business/aviation/jetstar-works-to-boost-number-of-women-in-engineering-20160413-go5wzl.html