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A video campaign to inspire more girls to become airline pilots has been created by easyJet in a move designed to combat gender stereotyping.
The budget airline’s recruitment film is a re-creation of a scene from Hollywood film Catch Me If You Can in which Leonardo DiCaprio impersonates a pilot.
The one-minute short was filmed at Southend airport and stars nine-year-old Hannah Revie, whose mother Emily is an easyJet pilot.
The film shows Hannah dressed as a pilot and surrounded by an entourage of boys dressed as cabin crew, who are also played by the children of easyJet staff.
The campaign follows research among 500 easyJet pilots, which found that as children, boys were more likely to consider a career as a pilot than girls.
More than half (55%) of male pilots knew they wanted the job by the age of ten.
But women were less keen, as only half had only thought about the career by the time they were 16 – or even older.
More than one fifth (22%) of male pilots were already sold on the job by the age of five.
The airline is championing female pilots of the future ahead of the first day back to school for UK students next week, as many children return to a new term considering their future career options.
The research also found positive role models in TV and film were key to inspiring young people.
But the airline hopes to correct misconceptions forwarded by Hollywood movies like Top Gun, The Aviator and Flyboys that being a pilot is a man’s job.
Chief operations officer Chris Browne said: “It is clear from our research that changing perceptions and ambitions for women starts in school.
“We wanted to create an entertaining but thought-provoking take on this famous movie scene, to inspire more girls to pursue this rewarding career. We hope that our campaign inspires a new generation of pilots, challenges gender stereotyping and encourages more women to take to the skies.”
The airline expects to recruit 460 new pilots in 2018 to meet record demands for a third consecutive year, as its European network continues to grow.
Opportunities range from cadet pilots starting their career to experienced co-pilots and captains from other airlines and the military.
EasyJet wants to encourage new talent into the cockpit to address an industry gender imbalance through its Amy Johnson Initiative, which was introduced in 2015.
The initiative has been linked with an influx of female talent to the airline – new entrant female pilot numbers at easyJet have grown from 6% in 2015 to 13% last year.
A target for 20% of new pilots joining the airline to be women by 2020 has been set at a time when only 5% of all pilots worldwide are female, as benchmarked by the International Society of Women Airline Pilots.