Old hat in the Air Force. This story is more than a year old http://www.af.mil/news/story.asp?storyID=123011940

I remember several years ago an all-female crew on a (now defunct) Canada3000 A330 flight, trans-Atlantic.

The story hit the papers, and their was a photo taken if I'm not mistaken. Maybe it is googlable.

I, for one, really enjoy hearing a female voice from the cockpit. It gives me the satisfying feelings that society is progressing positively, and that we passengers are in good hands.

Meanwhile - I found an interesting article on the evolution of women airline pilots:

http://www.airodyssey.net/articles/women.html

Quoting BandA (Reply 1): I maybe wrong, but I think Air India or Indian has had All Female Crew a while ago.

I think it was IC on their A320's.....they have quite a few female pilots.....AI also have quite a few female pilots....

Quoting B747-437B (Reply 48): until we actually had a diversion situation where the local handlers refused to talk to the female captain and insisted on dealing with the male FO instead. They changed their tune after that.

Let me guess ... Saudi Arabia ?!

Quoting Boeing747_600 (Reply 53): Quoting B747-437B (Reply 48): until we actually had a diversion situation where the local handlers refused to talk to the female captain and insisted on dealing with the male FO instead. They changed their tune after that. Let me guess ... Saudi Arabia ?!

Almost all countries to the immediate west of India would have this problem..... 

If not already mentioned. Air Berlin has from tim to time planes with 6 femals crew.

georg

Quoting Boeing747_600 (Reply 53): Let me guess ... Saudi Arabia ?!

No. Togo actually.

As a flight attendant I have worked with an all female cabin and cockpit crew more than once.

Quoting BandA (Reply 1): but I think Air India or Indian has had All Female Crew a while ago.

You are correct. They made a big deal about it because AI has always been a regional leader for female advancement.

On a similar note... I have had the privilege, as a flight attendant, to fly with an all male crew. That, by itself, is not unusual. What WAS unusual was the fact that we were all male, all straight, and all married with children.... pilots and flight attendants one and all. I'm not by any means homophobic, but it's a simple fact that a staggering percentage of all male flight attendants are gay. The going joke at our company was the we straight ones introduced ourselves as part of the 2% Club. LOL So, back to the regularly scheduled topic...

717

I also know that contrary to the belief, there are gay pilots too... though, for ego reasons, they don't readily come out. I had the experience with one... he was notorious in our company... he was short, bald, gay, a lawyer, AND a overly egotistical Navy fighter pilot... Major chip on those tiny shoulders. No one liked him, though he was a good pilot. He had the personality of a rock... but who says you gotta be a people person to be a good pilot. But a good rapport with your cabin crew is ALWAYS helpful. To those of you in the biz... CRM was not one of his strongpoints.

717

[Edited 2007-02-15 18:35:21]

Quoting Boeing747_600 (Reply 53): Let me guess ... Saudi Arabia ?!

It is interesting you should say this because I just wondered the same thing this week. I flew Air France CDG - RUH - CDG. On the way there the whole cabin crew was male. Which made sense to me. But on the way back, the cabin crew was all female and the first officer was too. Only the captain was male. The inbound flight arrives at around 18:30 and the outbound departs at 01:20. So the crew must stay overnight somewhere near RUH. The same thing for the Jeddah flight as well, I guess, as the timings are similar. Any one know the details about this? Does the crew stay in RUH?

Quoting EDICHC (Reply 30): Dutch AirForce does.

I think Butch AirForce would be more appropriate.

i know of a few all-female crews operating for chautauqua, and have had the distinct pleasure of both flying with them and handling thier flights on my ramp. it's pretty common...

even in the air force:

Quoting B747-437B (Reply 56): No. Togo actually.

Togo?! When you said "Our airline" , I guess I just assumed that you meant Air India! I cant think of an AI route that would call for a diversion overflying Togo, unless they're restarted LOS.

Quoting Gr8Circle (Reply 54): Almost all countries to the immediate west of India would have this problem.....

Probably, but I'd be willing to give Iran and Pakistan the benefit of the doubt 

Quoting Cancidas (Reply 63): even in the air force:

Did you see Reply 50??  

I believe there was a photo here with all 3 NW DC-10 pilots being female.

Quoting Boeing747_600 (Reply 64): When you said "Our airline" , I guess I just assumed that you meant Air India!

Nope. Not Air India. AI is my dad's airline. I have my own.  

Quoting UAL777UK (Reply 44): I have flown a few times with UA and have had an all female crew.

UA has at least a couple of female 747-400 captains.

I flew on OO when they had a mother and daughter team at the controls of an EMB-120. The flight attendant was a male. I did not even look in the cockpit when I boarded. While taxing, I looked up and saw two sets of poofy blonde hair. I grabbed each arm rest, and felt a bit dizzy for a minute. I asked the FA if I was seeing what I was really seeing, and he laughed.

Needless to say, it was a very smooth flight! The landing was perfect! I just had these visions of the mom fighting with her daughter over her new boyfriend, and a full on cat fight in the cockpit. I had also never flown on a plane with a female FO or Captain for that matter, and to suddenly see 2.

I think they were the first mother daughter team. Not sure where they are now, but it was not only cool, but proved to me that girls can do it just as good! I am in no way sexist either. I think ladies do a fine job of flying.

Quoting SSTsomeday (Reply 51): I remember several years ago an all-female crew on a (now defunct) Canada3000 A330 flight, trans-Atlantic.

I remember reading the full article somewhere on the internet last year, but I am sure it was a 757 inbound to MAN.

Quoting VHXLR8 (Reply 8): I myself have never been with an all female crew (being male and all). But i have been on 767 flights where i was the only male crew member on the aircraft; female capt, female f/0, 6 female f/a's and me!

Been there myself but on a smaller bird....

Quoting WesternA318 (Reply 11): I'd LOVE to be on that flight...

Hehehe, not always as promising as it seems  

Phil
FlyingColours

Quoting Boeing747_600 (Reply 64): Probably, but I'd be willing to give Iran and Pakistan the benefit of the doubt

You are very generous 

Quoting B747-437B (Reply 67): Nope. Not Air India. AI is my dad's airline. I have my own.

and that airline would be ....

"All-female crew flies Pak plane
Agencies

Karachi, Jan 28 (2006) The first Pakistani passenger plane with a female pilot and all-woman crew flew on a domestic flight this week, making aviation history in the Islamic nation, an airline official said on Friday.

Now the pilot, Ayesha Rabia Naveed, 48, who already has 6,000 hours' experience flying as a co-pilot with Pakistan International Airlines, aims to captain larger jet airliners for the national carrier.

The 40 passengers aboard on Wednesday's PIA flight from Islamabad to the eastern city of Lahore were told before takeoff that the pilot was a woman, but only found out afterward that it was a first.

After the safe landing in Lahore, colleagues showered Naveed, co-pilot Sadia Aziz, and flight attendants Shazia Kauser and Tauseef Ashraf with petals and garlands as they left the Fokker turboprop plane.

"That was a nice feeling and great sense of achievement for me," Naveed told The Associated Press on Friday. "

full text:

http://www.centralchronicle.com/20060129/2901193.htm

Photos below of the first AC flight about 3 years ago with an all-female cockpit crew. Photo undated but must have been 2003 or 2004 as it was a 737-200 of AC's short-lived Zip low-cost operation in Western Canada which was disbanded in 2004 after AC's restructuring since it was no longer needed due to the cost reductions that came with the restructuring. Appropriately, the flight, which if memory correct was from YVR to YXY (Whitehorse, Yukon) used one of AC Zip's pink 737s. It would have been an all-female flight except for one male flight attendant.



Photo caption reads:

Captain Rosella Bjornson and First Officer Lee O'Riley on their pink Zip B737 (how perfect!). Almost an entire female crew. Rosella told us, "It was the first time since I was hired by an airline in 1973 that I had flown with another female pilot. When I was with Canadian Airlines we had 12 female pilots and Air Canada before the merger had 60 female pilots. They have since hired a few so I think Air Canada had about 80 female pilots out of 3200 males. In Edmonton we have a total of 50 pilots and I am the only woman."
Rosella adds, "Lee was so nice - she said I was her mentor and her inspiration. We met each other at the first Canadian Women In Aviation Conference in Vancouver in 1990 when she was working on her Commercial License."

And a 1999 article on her background:
http://www.canadian99s.org/articles/P_bjornson.htm

She retired a couple of years ago when AC retired their last 732s inherited from the CP merger. She started her airline career in 1973 as F-28 first officer for Transair, a regional carrier based in YWG that later merged with Pacific Western, which merged with CP Air in 1987 to form Canadian Airlines. Her F-28 job in 1973 gave her the distinction of being the first female pilot on scheduled jet equipment in North America. She was also the first female member of the Canadian Air Line Pilots Association. She became the first female jet captain for a major Canadian airline when she became 737 captain for CP in 1990. Apart from her first F-28 job, she flew 737-200s for her entire career. Her husband was also a CP 737 pilot. Expect they may have flown together at times. She was inducted into the Canadian Aviation Hall of Fame in 1997. I was on at least a couple of flights with her at the controls when I worked for CP.

When I worked for AmEagle. We had a couple of trips with all female flight crew and cabin crew.

One of the female pilots warned me when she was flying it is no longer the cockpit, it was the box office.

David