So true, Lookleft. Today I met a pilot who operates an Erickson Air Crane. She told me she had been interviewed by the press yesterday and been asked 'How does it feel to be a female pilot?' She said 'I don't know, I've never been a male pilot.'
Her crew chief was full of praise for her ability in the firefighting operation they are contracted for in WA. Why is the term 'female pilot' used by the press, when I never hear male colleagues being referred to as 'male pilots'? Apparently I'm an oddity, as a 'female aircraft builder'. Nope, I'm just a pilot and home-builder. Gender is irrelevant in this field.