UCAA Hosts Third Girls in Aviation Day, Inspiring 100 Students to Dream Big
The Uganda Civil Aviation Authority (UCAA) hosted the third Girls in Aviation Day on Wednesday, October 28, 2026, at Entebbe International Airport, bringing together 100 students to explore the wide range of careers the aviation industry offers.
The event was organised in partnership with AirServ, Chiedza CheAfrica and Women in Aviation International. Over its three consecutive editions, the programme has now reached about 300 girls, introducing them to aviation as a place where they can build their futures.
Presiding over the event, the Authority’s Director Human Resource and Administration, Ms. Sabah Ahmed, delivered the remarks on behalf of the Ag. Director General, Ms. Olive B. Lumonya. “To the girls, there is a place for you in aviation,” she said. She noted that many people think only of pilots when they think of the industry, yet aviation depends on many other professionals with a vast range of skills and backgrounds.
The celebrations also drew Captain Deborah Hecker, a Boeing 787 pilot with American Airlines andØServed on the Women in Aviation BOD for 9 years as Chair, Vice Chair and Scholarship Chair, Membership & Governance Committee member . Her career guidance session gave the girls a glimpse of what their own futures could look like, with a woman who flies one of the world’s most advanced passenger aircraft standing right before them.
Throughout the day, the students also met and received career guidance from female professionals working as air traffic controllers, pilots, aeronautical information management officers, communication, navigation and surveillance engineers, bird hazard and wildlife specialists, architects and accountants. The women were brought together deliberately to show the girls that women can excel in each of these fields.
“Your gender should never determine the size of your dream,” Ms. Ahmed said, urging the girls to take their education seriously, especially Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM). She encouraged them not to fear Mathematics or Physics, stressing that the aviation industry of the future will rely heavily on science, technology, innovation, engineering and data.
She also challenged the girls to ask questions of the professionals, learn from their experiences and seek out mentors. Dreams, she reminded them, require hard work, and setbacks should never be allowed to discourage them. Aviation is a global industry, she added, and the skills they acquire can take them well beyond Uganda.
Ms. Ahmed also called on parents and teachers to continue supporting girls to pursue STEM and other careers, without limiting them because of gender stereotypes.
UCAA reaffirmed its commitment to the International Civil Aviation Organization’s (ICAO) Next Generation of Aviation Professionals (NGAP) Programme, which focuses on attracting, educating, training and retaining young professionals, promoting gender equality in aviation, and encouraging global collaboration.
The Authority also noted that the Africa Women and Youth in Aviation (AWAYA) committee, under the African Civil Aviation Commission (AFCAC), is chaired by its Deputy Director General, Ms. Olive Lumonya. The committee has secured over 200 scholarships through the ITAérea–ICAO Developing Countries Scholarship Programme, opening doors for women and youth across the continent to pursue careers in aviation.
The highlight of the day came later, when the girls were taken through the full airport check-in process and then boarded a Uganda Airlines aircraft, where they experienced the comfort of air travel first-hand.