A century of female flight was celebrated by Tayside Aviation this week.
The organisation, which operates out of Dundee and Fife airports, commemorated Monday’s milestone alongside the British Women”s Pilot Association in a nationwide Women in the Air day.
In 1911 Hilda Hewlett entered the history books after becoming the first woman to be issued with a British pilot”s licence.
Despite this achievement flying continues to be dominated by men, with female pilots only making up around 6% in the commercial world.
Jim Watt, Tayside Aviation”s managing director, said the firm, which employs three female instructors, was keen to see this statistic change.
“We operate G-EVIE which was donated by Evie Saunders for the benefit of helping young women in particular to learn to fly.
“Evie was 67 when she learned and although she sadly passed away we get to see G-EVIE fly every day delivering Air League scholarships and I am sure her spirit is uplifted by this.”
Two of the company”s former female flying instructors are now piloting commercial flights for Loganair senior first officer Almudena Rivas and first officer Andrea Marco, who now work as part of the Tayside/Loganair Partnership.
Mr Watt said: “Almudena and Andrea were fantastic instructors and, like our current female instructors, have proved to be great role models for women thinking about entering the aviation industry.
“We and their students are always sorry to see them leave, but we are pleased that we play an important part in their career development.”
Tayside Aviation provides all flight training, including the commercial pilot”s licence, instrument ratings and multi crew coordination courses. Training is maximised using a simulator that was part-funded by a regional selective assistance grant.
Melissa Van Geldere (31), from Amsterdam, has been flying for three years and instructing at Tayside Aviation since March. She said it was important to remember being a pilot is about experience and dedication.
“Working in Dundee is great because there is a real variation in flying at Tayside Aviation and you gain experience teaching people with different goals and levels of experience, from private pilots to RAF air cadets.
“I would like to end up one day working on an plane with flying doctors because it would be exciting to be called to rescue a sick patient at the last minute, and you would have to be able to react quickly.”
Elsewhere Fife Flying Club also celebrated the important aviation date.
The club hosted an open day to recognise the centenary, plus the 30th anniversary of the “construction of the hard runway at Glenrothes.
The event was officially opened by Elizabeth Childs, Deputy Lord Lieutenant of Fife, and was attended by Tricia “Marwick, presiding officer at the Scottish Parliament.
Activities on the day focused on promoting aviation as a “career option for women, including providing the opportunity for female visitors to take a trial flight with various club members and instructors.
Mrs Marwick took the “opportunity to fly with Karen Simpson, who obtained her private pilot”s licence at Fife.