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GIRLS FIX, FLY, & BUILD
WOMEN BUILD PLANES is Habitat for Aviation’s flagship initiative—and a powerful “see-to-believe” moment for what’s possible when access, mentorship, and real work come together.
Launched in October 2023, the project brings together a multigenerational, all-female team of women and girls to build a real aircraft from the ground up: a RANS S-21 Outbound. To our knowledge, this is a first in aviation history—women and girls across generations building an airplane together, side by side.
MORE THAN
A PLANE
WOMEN BUILD PLANES is not a workshop, a class, or a one-day experience. It is a sustained apprenticeship environment where participants show up week after week to drill, rivet, wire, problem-solve, lead, and learn—supported by skilled mentors and by one another.
Through the build, participants gain:
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Hands-on technical skills rooted in real aviation work
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Confidence that comes from being trusted with responsibility
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A sense of belonging in a field where many have never seen themselves reflected
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Clearer pathways into maintenance, avionics, flying, and related careers
A CULTURE SHIFT
YOU CAN SEE
When women and girls build an airplane together, the narrative changes—not just for participants, but for families, educators, employers, peers, and communities who witness it. Assumptions soften. Expectations rise. New possibilities enter the frame.
In our hangar, leadership is shared. Expertise is learned and earned. Mistakes are part of the process. Confidence follows competence.
This is how culture shifts through real people doing real work in public view.
PROOF OF
CONCEPT
Once completed, the WOMEN BUILD PLANES aircraft will fly as a visible testament to women’s skill, leadership, and place in aviation. It will travel to airshows and STEM events to further spark these “see-to-believe” moments. Our Pink-Plane will continue its life as a training aircraft for the women and girls who helped build it.
WOMEN BUILD PLANES shows what happens when environments are intentionally designed to draw people in, support them well, and give them reasons to stay.
PART OF A BIGGER SOLUTION
WOMEN BUILD PLANES sits within Habitat for Aviation’s broader work to break barriers in the aviation workforce. It demonstrates—clearly and publicly—that when opportunity expands, aviation grows stronger.
Our WOMEN BUILD PLANES team is a multigenerational, all-female community of builders, mentors, and learners working side by side to construct a real aircraft while expanding who belongs in aviation. Through hands-on work, shared leadership, and mutual support, the team builds technical skill, confidence, and lasting pathways into aviation careers.
Our broader Habitat for Aviation build teams bring together youth and adults of all genders and ages—mentors, apprentices, and community members—working side by side on projects like the Zenith airplane build and other real world hands-on aircraft work alongside mentors in the field.
