IAWA Report Urges Active Sponsorship to Close Gender Gap in Aerospace Leadership

The International Aerospace Women’s Association (IAWA), in collaboration with global management consulting firm Oliver Wyman, has released the second edition of its “Lift Off to Leadership: Leadership Barriers for Women in Aerospace and Aviation” report, highlighting ongoing barriers to women’s advancement as the industry grapples with a global talent shortage.

The 2026 report updates the initial 2021 study and finds that while incremental progress has been made, a persistent perception gap and continued microaggressions remain significant obstacles to women reaching executive leadership roles. Against the backdrop of workforce shortages affecting innovation and operational resilience, the report positions diversity and inclusion not only as a social priority but as a business imperative.

Among the key findings, women are half as likely as men to rate gender equality within their organizations as high, and twice as many women believe their companies place little to no priority on increasing female representation in leadership. Nearly half of the women surveyed said they have considered leaving the industry. While men most often cited compensation as a reason for departure, women identified implicit bias as a primary and growing concern.

The report also highlights what it describes as a double standard in communication styles. Thirty-eight percent of women reported being labeled “too aggressive” during their careers, compared to 15 percent of men. In addition, 68 percent of women identified sponsorship as critical to career progression, yet only about one-quarter of leaders are actively serving as sponsors, a figure that has remained largely unchanged since the first edition of the study.

Marita Lintener, president of IAWA, said the findings reinforce that talent is not the issue, but access to opportunity and workplace culture remain barriers. She emphasized the need for the industry to move from passive support to active sponsorship to better manage risk and complexity in a rapidly evolving operating environment.

The report outlines several recommendations. For organizations, it calls for embedding active sponsorship as a core leadership competency and addressing everyday workplace experiences that contribute to female attrition. For individual leaders, it encourages moving beyond mentoring to actively advocating for women in decision-making forums. At the industry level, the report recommends adopting gender-neutral recruitment standards and investing in established leadership development initiatives.

The study was co-authored by Oksana Bardygula, Debra Santos, Marita Lintener and Livia Hayes. The full report is available for download at iawa.org.