Thornton College outside

Spotlight Careers: Clare Lewis – BA Pilot

Posted: 5th May 2022

british airways 777

As we are now able to plan and enjoy holidays again, it was perfect to be transported away to exotic holiday destinations by British Airways Pilot, Clare Lewis.

Clare gave us a brilliant insight into her working week, which this week includes trips to Lagos, Bahrain and Phoenix. We had a whistle stop tour round the cockpit of the Triple 7 aircraft that Clare flies and learnt about the Pilot’s important role of executing a smooth take off and landing. A clip from a plane spotter at Heathrow clearly showed that Clare has mastered this, as she landed the plane in testing weather conditions.

Only 6% of British Airways Pilots are female, the first being in 1987. Clare emphasised all the benefits the job gives for women and shared her own journey. She trained as a Primary School Teacher, applied three times to British Airways and it took her nine years to get accepted. She made the point that we must never give up our dreams, and the life skills, confidence and resilience we build along the way, will help us achieve them.

Categories: Careers