Whirly-Girls International (Booth B3507), a nonprofit organization dedicated to advancing women in the helicopter industry, announced the 24 recipients of the 2019 Whirly-Girls Scholarship Awards during its annual Heli-Expo banquet.
The industry-sponsored scholarships, valued at more than $235,000, went to recipients in categories that ranged from Airbus and FlightSafety International training to training covering Robinson R22/R44/R66 safety, flight instructor, Garmin avionics, aircraft ditching, advanced flight, fuel safety, night vision goggles, mountain flying, and add-on flight in a variety of helicopters.
“These women are going to become agents of change and innovation in the helicopter industry,” said Alison Martin, Whirly-Girls president and ground instructor at New Mexico-based Del Sol Aviation. “With women holding fewer than 6 percent of pilot certificates, there is a massive missed opportunity of talent and diversity of thought. Thanks to our generous sponsors, we have the means to help advance the industry through the mentorship and empowerment of female aviators. We will stand alongside them as they forge new paths in the years to come."
The Whirly-Girls Scholarship Fund was initiated in 1968, growing from a single $500 scholarship to a wide range of training and development scholarships valued at hundreds of thousands of dollars today.