King County International Airport (KCIA) is looking for feedback on two initiatives being developed:
- an Air Monitoring Plan to determine the type and location for air monitors at the airport.
- a Landscape Plan to identify what plants to use at the airport.
You can get involved by taking our survey by May 27 and/or participating in an upcoming community workshop on May 17 from 5 - 6 p.m. on Zoom. Register here.
Get more information in English and six additional languages.
|
“Motivating and inspirational.”
“Powerful.”
“Amazing.”
These are just some of the words that three attendees from KCIA used to describe their experience at the Women in Aviation International conference in Nashville, Tennessee.
Yet those feelings were balanced with some stark statistics:
- For the last 60 years, the introduction of women into aviation in nearly every functional specialty has been stagnant.
- In most aviation occupations, women make up less than 20% of the workforce.
- Women who belong to underrepresented groups face unique barriers and often even greater challenges.
   Alyssa Dean, Liz Evans and Ciara Gamble have their own take on those statistics and women’s progress in the aviation industry.
“We’ve come a long way and there’s still a long way to go,” said Gamble, Airport Duty Manager.
“It was nice seeing a huge group of women supporting other women and learning about the aviation industry,” said Evans, a Functional Analyst in Business Information Systems.
Evans and Dean, an Airport Duty Manager, both said it shouldn’t stop there. Men need to get on board, too.
“I highly encourage our leadership team to go to this to get a feel for what we are going through as women,” Evans said. “It would give them some insight.”
Evans said that when men are engaged as advocates for women in the workplace, women succeed.
“One of the statistics was when you have men engaged, 68% of women feel heard, and also they express satisfaction with career advancement,” Evans said.
“I saw a lot more men attending sessions,” Dean said. “I think that’s huge because a lot of the statistics and the stories are the things the men need to see so they can change hiring strategies.”
KCIA attendees said their focus is on the future.
“It was an amazing energy that fueled me when I came back to do work for women and also for equity work in general,” Dean said.
 |
|
Just a few of the successful, high-ranking women in aviation presenters at the conference:
- Niloofar Rahmani, at left, is the first female fixed-wing pilot for the Afghan Air Force. In 2015, the U.S. military brought Niloofar to the United States to learn to fly C-130s, and she was granted political asylum.
- U.S. Air Force Gen. Jacqueline D. Van Ovost is one of 11 Combatant Commands in the Department of Defense. She is a graduate of the U.S. Air Force Test Pilot School and a command pilot with more than 4,200 hours in more than 30 aircraft, including the C-32A, C-17A, C-141B, KC-135R and KC-46A.
- Carole Hopson is a United Airlines First Officer for 737 Aircraft and a flight instructor. She has created the 100 Pairs of Wings Project, which aims to send one hundred Black women to flight school by 2035.
|
Welcome to Landin Reibman, one of the airport’s new interns.
Reibman, at right, started in Operations on March 22. He attends Federal Way High School and plans to graduate this June. He will be at the airport through the summer, working a maximum of 240 hours. He comes to the airport through the King County Career LaunchPad, managed by Children, Youth & Young Adults Division of the Department of Community & Human Services.
“We serve primarily young people 16 to 24 years old who are needing employment support to reach their employment goals,” said Andrea Lopez, a social worker at DCHS who helped Reibman get connected with the airport internship.
Reibman is already seeing that happen.
“I aspire to be a commercial pilot,” Reibman said. “This internship has helped me network with pilots and taught me the operations side of an airport. When I enroll in ground school, I'll have a much easier time because I've gotten a head-start on a lot of the curriculum.”
“Not only do I love planes and aviation in general, but I also think this internship will teach me some great life skills and skills I should know being in the aviation industry,” he added. “The amount I've learned already in my first couple of weeks here has been amazing!"
The airport is hiring six more interns who will start in June, double the number hired last year. Those will include one high school student, three in college and two graduate students. All are paid internships. Watch for features on them in upcoming editions.
|
|
Students from Raisbeck Aviation High School visited KCIA in mid-April, touring the airport and learning about Aircraft Rescue and Firefighting (ARFF).
Based in Tukwila, the school uses a context of aviation and aerospace to prepare students for college, career and citizenship.
|
|
 |
 |
|
Guided by a Transportation Security Administration (TSA) statement on April 18, masks are no longer required at King County International Airport-Boeing Field. However, Public Health - Seattle & King County continues to recommend that people wear masks in indoor public transportation settings, including the airport terminal, at this time.
A high-quality mask can reduce your risk of infection and help prevent spread of COVID-19 to others who are not able to be vaccinated or at high risk for severe infections.
More information about acceptable masks and their use is available on the CDC's website.
|
The Airport Roundtable has approved a plan to install new bike racks in memory of Mike Colmant, deputy director of the airport until his death a year ago in a hit-and-run crash. Colmant was an avid bicyclist and a Canadian. The new bike racks are in the shape of the maple leaf, a symbol of Canada.
The bike racks will replace one that used to stand in front of the now-demolished Arrivals Building.
“We knew we wanted to replace the bike rack and we wanted to do it to honor Mike,” said Davey Pilley. “We’re working with Engineering on the placement.”
The bike racks may go on either side of the main doors to the terminal building or at the plaza just north of the building near the fountain.
Another plan in the works for the plaza is a memorial recognizing local aviators. One memorial will recognize Joe Clark, who developed the wingtips now standard on Boeing 737s. His company, Aviation Partners, used to lease offices in the Arrivals Building.
“We’re trying to make this plaza more open and inviting for people who are waiting for a flight,” Pilley said.
|
 Potential locations for the new bike racks are noted in red on the picture above, which shows the plaza and fountain to the north of the terminal building.
About 20 airport and Airport Rescue and Firefighting employees gathered 1,100 pounds of garbage during the latest cleanup on April 20, the fifth done by airport staff and volunteers. Ryan Tomasich, a Roundtable advisory board member representing Boeing, also joined in. Thanks to all who participated! |
|
 |
Did you receive this email from someone else? If so, subscribe today.
|
