Brownie badge urges girls to reach for sky

A NEW aviation badge for Brownies has been unveiled as part of a campaign to encourage more girls to become pilots.

To earn the award, Brownies will have to carry out aeronautical experiments using different materials and launch techniques, as well as name 40 things that fly.

Tens of thousands of Brownies – all girls aged seven to 10 – are expected to take part in the activities in the first year of the new badge.

It has been introduced in partnership with easyJet, which wants 20 per cent of its new entrant pilots to be female by 2020 as women currently make up around just three per cent of commercial airline pilots worldwide.

EasyJet captain Marnie Munns, the lead pilot for the airline’s Amy Johnson Flying Initiative, said: “We have always believed in the importance of female role models to encourage girls to see a pilot career as a real option available to them, which is why we are really excited to be unveiling the new aviation badge for Brownies as part of our partnership with Girlguiding.”

The Amy Johnson Flying Initiative – named after the flying pioneer – was launched in October 2015 to tackle the stereotype that men are more suited to being pilots than women.

In the year ending September 2015, women made up six per cent of easyJet’s new pilot intake and five per cent of its total pilot community. It’s aim of doubling the proportion of female new entrant pilots to 12 per cent over two years was achieved after 12 months, leading to the new target of 20 per cent by 2020.