Woman-Only Crew Flies a United 787 to the World's Largest Airshow

Flights with all-female crews aren't that unusual anymore. It happens at Emirates, it happens at Air India, it happens at Southwest, and at many other airlines.

But it can still make news, for example when a jetliner staffed by all women goes on a special flight to the biggest airshow in the world. That's what happened on Wednesday, when United sent a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner staffed by women only from Chicago (ORD) to the EAA AirVenture air show in Oshkosh (OSH), as a symbol of the company's support of women in aviation.

The all-woman crew was joined by nearly 100 United female employees in areas including Airport Operations, Inflight Services, Flight Operations, Technical Operations, Network Operations and more.

Crew members and other United leadership then met with 70 women high school students with a passion for aviation to give a seminar. Conversations and activities included advice on how to pursue a career in aviation, a tour of the Boeing 787, and the announcement of a new scholarship for budding aviation enthusiasts at the Women in Aviation Luncheon by United's Chief System Pilot Bebe O'Neil.

"Women are in critical leadership roles across United and what better way to demonstrate our commitment to women in aviation than arriving with more than 100-strong at the largest airshow in the world?" said Linda Jojo, executive vice president of technology and chief digital officer, in a statement by the airline.

It should be noted, however, that women still make up only 3% of airline CEOs worldwide.