Brussels Airlines marks 20 years since first female licensed technician, pushes for greater gender balance in technical roles

On August 11, 2025, Brussels Airlines celebrated the 20th anniversary of hiring its first fully licensed female aircraft technician, Carolien Sterckx, who joined in 2005 and now works as a Maintenance Control Centre Engineer. Today, 28 women work in Maintenance and Engineering, representing 8% of that department’s workforce.

While 52% of all Brussels Airlines employees are women, representation varies by department—Ground Operations (76%) and Cabin Crew (72%) are the highest, while IT (26%), Cockpit (10%), and Maintenance & Engineering (8%) lag behind. At the executive level, 47% of top managers are women.

The airline highlights diversity and inclusion as key to innovation and customer focus, and encourages women to apply for open technical roles—16 of the company’s 24 current vacancies are in Maintenance and Engineering.

Personal stories from Sterckx and Pascale Slootmans, a Cabin Repair Technician, underline the importance of challenging stereotypes and inspiring more women to pursue hands-on aviation careers.