You’ve perhaps seen the #WomenInDrones hashtag before. It’s intended to highlight women working or involved with the field – and encourage others to consider entering what is a male-dominated sector. What better day than International Women’s Day to support this ongoing initiative?
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Sally French, better known as “The Drone Girl,” sat down with Randi Zuckerberg, an American businesswoman and previous Facebook employee to discuss all things drones, including the future of drones and the pilot licence requirements, and how Sally first got into drones.
On September 27, 2019, UPS Flight Forward was the only company to date to receive FAA approval under Part 135 Standard to operate a drone airline business. Since then, we have learned of UPS’s plans to partner with CVS to deliver healthcare products and over-the-counter medications to residents by drone. That information came out soon after we learned of the partnership between FedEx, Wing Aviation, and Walgreens. Today, however, I would like to bring some attention to UPS’s all-female drone flight crew: Sherri Roberts, Candice McHargue, and Caroline Furse. Because the drone industry is dominated by men, that team might help to inspire the next generation of female drone pilots.
Trumbull Unmanned‘s founder and CEO, Dyan Gibbens attributes her success in the drone industry to seeking out expert and peer mentors. Asking mentors for help is not a sign of weakness but a sign of strength, she says in Entrepreneur. Dyan Gibbens is a former member of the U.S. Air Force Parachute Team, a mom, an entrepreneur, Latina, and a drone pilot.
The Guardian has a really nice piece, posted yesterday, about women drone pilots. And how the drone industry is very much a male-dominated industry. The British newspaper interviews four female drone pilots to get their perspective and to find out what it might take to change this.