Women at Airbus: Karen’s story

By Karen, Airbus Aircraft Fitter

After 27 years of working in retail, Karen made the decision to change careers and has found herself enjoying the hands-on nature of work as an Aircraft Fitter at Airbus.

A shift in career paths
I have been working at Airbus for a total of six weeks – two weeks in training and four weeks working on the shop floor!

Before joining Airbus, I ran a cleaning and handy woman business over the last five years. Prior to that, I was an assistant manager at a well-known UK mass market jewellery chain store for 27 years.

Transferrable skills
When I heard Guidant were hiring Aircraft Fitters for Airbus, I jumped at the opportunity – Airbus seemed like a great company to work for and this sounded like an interesting role. I always liked working with my hands and my last role introduced me to lots of skills I could transfer over into my current role.

Reservations about working in a manufacturing environment as a female employee
I did have concerns about the environment potentially being a challenging one for women to feel comfortable in, but after joining, I realised I couldn’t have been more wrong! I feel right at home with the rest of my team and there isn’t anything I can’t do that my other teammates can.

I am partnered up with various experienced members of the team so I can carry out on-the-job training and learn how to perform different tasks. A Primary Operator or Inspector checks on our work at the end of every shift to ensure our work is carried out to the required high standard.

The job is interesting and rewarding from start to finish
Before joining Airbus, I would have never fully appreciated the intricate amount of work that goes into bolting aircraft wings together nor understood how important every part of the process is.

Day to day, your job as an Aircraft Fitter can vary – from applying cleaning sealant on wing skins to fitting bolts onto wing skins. Through it all, we make sure it's always done safely and following the correct standard.

Be part of a great team
Rest assured, you’ll be joining an experienced team where everyone is ready to help and train you. I feel so lucky to be part of the team and anyone thinking of joining will be supported with all the necessary training to do a great job. Here are some skills you’ll need to excel at in this role:

• Great people skills – you’ll be working as part of a team

• Good with your hands – you’ll be using a variety of handheld tools to get jobs done

• Being able to read and follow instructions well

• Be open to learning new skills

• Work safely and follow safety rules in the factory

Working in a manufacturing and engineering environment may seem intimidating but…
Don't tell yourself you haven't got the skills – you will be surprised by how much you can do. I truly enjoy my new position at Airbus from start to finish and feel so lucky and proud to be working with a great team and for a great company!

Be part of Women at Airbus in Broughton, hiring skilled and entry-level Aircraft Fitters today >