Katie McEntire Wiatt has a simple mission: Fill the skies with women.
The teacher-turned-filmmaker is producing a documentary to inspire girls and young women to join aviation -- a field that, like many science and technology careers, employs mostly men.
Only about 6 percent of U.S. pilots are women, including commercial, private, student, and recreational pilots, Federal Aviation Administration data shows.
"Many barriers still exist for young women who might pursue aviation/STEM fields," McEntire Wiatt said, pointing to socioeconomic inequality, lack of access to training and education, and broader cultural stereotypes about who gets to be a pilot.
In Fly Like A Girl, McEntire Wiatt shares the stories of women pilots who, with the exception of Amelia Earhart, have been largely kept out of the spotlight. The documentary is still in production by Indie Atlantic Films.
"Some of these women may not be well known to those outside the aviation world," she said, but "their stories and contributions to our world are astounding and inspiring."
Topics Documentaries Film
