International Women’s Day is coming up this Sunday 8th March and I thought we’d dedicate both this episode and next to two women who embody female empowerment, equality and achievements. To be fair, every woman AND man who has generously come on the show has been incredible in a different way making it pretty much impossible for me to ever have themed “special guests” – they’re all so special. But particularly as a woman who has grown up taking the dialogue about women’s rights largely for granted and benefiting from the fight of earlier generations like my Mum’s, I always take a moment to appreciate International Women’s Day and, even if there is still work to do, how far we’ve come towards gender equality.

So, who better to join us this week than Emirates pilot, Dominique Cotte? Growing up in a town of 180 people, aviation isn’t exactly the industry you’d expect her to gravitate towards but her first flight had her hooked. The thing is, she was set on being an air hostess until her school friends suggested she set her sights on the cockpit surprising her one birthday with a flight lesson. She’s never looked back and is now an absolute boss flying for Emirates across the world.

As you know, I get SO fascinated by the details of other pathways and I LOVED finding out about qualifying on different aircraft and the first time you fly a jet. Dom shares openly about the highs and lows including the huge financial commitment of becoming a pilot, the many challenges she faced as a female in an industry that lags behind in equal representation and going from trying to blend in to wearing her red lippy and make up to fly with pride. I hope you enjoy as much as I did

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