Global demand for air travel is expected to more than double over the next two decades, reaching around eight billion passenger journeys by 2043. To meet that demand, the industry will need a broad talent pipeline at a time when competition for highly skilled professionals is already fierce. Meeting that challenge involves making full use of the people available to it — particularly the skilled women already in the industry.
New research from the Women in Aviation and Aerospace (WiAA) Charter shows that, despite the sector’s years of progress on diversity and inclusion, women remain significantly underrepresented in many technical, operational, and commercial roles that pave the way to senior leadership.
Where are women advancing, and where is progress stalling? Drawing on the first cross-sector dataset from WiAA Charter signatories on representation, progression, and pay, the Charter’s latest report, From ambition to action: Closing the gap for women in aviation and aerospace—sponsored by the UK Government's Department for Transport and Department for Business and Trade, and developed in collaboration with ADS, Sharing in Growth, and Oliver Wyman—highlights a persistent challenge: women are still not consistently progressing into senior leadership positions or the highest-paid roles. The report identifies several factors that may contribute to this, including limited representation in technical and operational roles, unequal access to sponsorship and leadership networks, and limited visibility into where and why women are dropping out of leadership pathways.
Women in aviation are still missing from senior leadership
The research suggests that the aviation and aerospace sector faces challenges not only in attracting women but also in supporting their progression. Women account for just 4.7% of pilots and 3.1% of maintenance engineers. Around three-quarters of participating organizations report less than 25% female representation in senior leadership, while only 2.8 out of 10 organizations report women making up at least a quarter of the highest earners.
The research also highlights a relationship between leadership representation and pay outcomes. Aviation reports an average gender pay gap of 53% — more than four times the UK average of 13% and substantially higher than sectors such as banking and retail.
As founder of the charter, I believe our industry’s greatest breakthroughs will come from ensuring the next generation of aviation and aerospace talent reflects the full breadth of ambition, perspective, and potential our sector has to offerSumati Sharma, Oliver Wyman partner and founder and co-chair of the Women in Aviation and Aerospace Charter
Sponsorship is key to advancing women in aviation leadership
The findings do reveal some encouraging signs of progress. Across the industry, organizations are increasingly investing in mentoring, sponsorship, leadership development, and flexible working arrangements designed to support long-term career progression. Access to both mentorship and sponsorship increased between 2021 and 2025, according to the Lift Off to Leadership survey, conducted by Oliver Wyman in partnership with the International Aerospace Women's Association and the Federal Aviation Administration in the United States.
While this increase is encouraging, the data also highlights an important difference between mentorship and sponsorship. While mentorship is now relatively widespread, sponsorship remains less common, despite being more closely linked to progression into senior leadership, according to the research. The research also shows that relatively few organizations collect data on talent attraction, employee experience, or exit patterns, providing limited visibility into long-term progression to leadership roles.
The opportunity to close the aviation leadership gap
The report highlights encouraging progress in the support available to women, with more organizations investing in mentorship and sponsorship, strengthening leadership accountability, and introducing more flexible working arrangements. It also provides data on how women in aviation are represented across every career stage, how organizations compare across representation, pay, mentorship, and sponsorship, and where differences remain.
The opportunity now lies in ensuring these efforts translate into greater representation in technical and operational roles, senior leadership, and the highest-paid positions.
