Size is not everything when it comes to WOAW events. The timeliness and our unity across borders make the Week highly effective at sending a positive message. We echo and amplify our individual voices. Doing anything but together is what has led to the recent upward shift in women participation within the industry.
Some WOAW event organizers dedicate many hours to organize large and intricate community events with Fly It Forward® flights, experiential activities, static displays, interactions with female role models and thousands of women and girls in attendance. These types of event represent only 10-15% of the overall annual WOAW reach. The average WOAW event welcomes 150-200 female attendees. Locations with Fly It Forward® flights report 50-75 airborne introductions (8-10 flight hours) during the Week.
To inspire you, we put together 5 cool event ideas to celebrate Women Of Aviation Week, have fun, and make a difference.
Organize an industry facility tour
Did you know that many airports, aerospace businesses, and air and space museums offer tours? Checkout their website. If they don’t, give them a call and ask them if they would consider a tour for your group.
Negotiate for the tour to be free for the girls because … it is Women Of Aviation Week. One way or the other, once you have arranged for a cool one-of-the-kind VIP tour for 10, 25, 50, 100 attendees, it is time to advertise your WOAW event on this website, on social media, and in local media to recruit your group of girls. Do not forget to highlight that participants are entitled to win prizes if they report their experience on this website before March 16.
Ask local flight schools and clubs to give free or discounted Fly It Forward® flights
If you live near an airport, visit the flight schools and pilot clubs. Encourage them to offer free or discounted first small aircraft flights for women and girls during the Week.
How about putting together a free “become a pilot”, “become an aerospace engineer”, or “become an air traffic controller” seminar, in person or online, with free first flights as attendance prizes? Negotiate a deal for as many women and girls as you can and advertise it here and in your community.
Raise awareness and have fun with Pink Paper Planes
Schools and corporations love this activity!
Nothing is quite as fun and inexpensive as WOAW’s Pink Paper Planes Challenge and yet, nothing is quite as effective a team- and awareness-building exercise as WOAW’s Pink Paper Plane Challenge. We suggest two cool ways to take the Challenge as a group – a mass Pink Paper Plane launch or a mosaic illustration made with Pink Paper Planes.
Whatever you choose, do not forget to also participate in the online Pink Paper Plane photo challenge to help set a world record and compete for awards. It starts with a location, a date, and a time. Announce it and promote it.
Get together, listen and talk
If you are already involved with a group or organization that meets regularly or you teach within a school environment, organizing a WOAW event can be as simple as giving a WOAW topic to a meeting or class taking place during the Week.
You could invite a female guest speaker who works in the industry, assign reading to discuss, or plan an aviation or space “movie night”. Select whatever it takes to engage, sensitize, and educate, Such events can also serve as great fundraisers for the Fly It Forward® Fund to make the event even more meaningful.
Produce and exhibit inspirational media
Ask your students, club members, or co-workers to create artwork, take photos, or create videos showing how women power aviation. To make it extra unique, make our 2023 theme the subject. Organize a public exhibit of the work produced during the Week. Remember to encourage the creators to share their work with us to win titles and prizes.
Share and promote
To get more ideas of fun activities to remember the legacy, celebrate the achievements, and shape the future, you can download our free WOAW Event Organizer Guide.
To help you make your event successful, we offer many free downloads such as logos, posters, social media banners and more in multiple languages and WOAW event supplies.
Every year, iWOAW remits Fly It Forward® Awards to individual event organizers and groups organizing events. Becoming eligible begins with adding a listing for the planned activity or event (open to the public or not) by March 1.