AWAR STORY
Advancing Women in Aviation Roundtable (AWAR) is a non-profit corporation registered in the U.S. Our mission is to engage with CEOs and other senior executives to build awareness and develop actionable strategies to promote the development and advancement of women leaders in the aviation industry.
We are committed to the belief that engagement with our senior male colleagues is critical to driving change for women in our business
AWAR was founded in 2015 by Amelia Anderson, the former Managing Director and Assistant Treasurer of American Airlines, and Dana Barta, Executive Director, Head of Aviation Capital Markets at JPMorgan.
AWAR’s unique, high-impact programs have become highly sought after, with our signature roundtable Leaders Luncheons in Dublin, Tokyo and Hong Kong and our numerous other panels and roundtable events regularly filled to capacity.
AWAR is a 501(c)(3) non-profit corporation registered in the U.S. In addition to our co-founders, we have assembled a Board of Directors of highly successful aviation professionals who bring passion and strategic vision to our shared pursuit of the AWAR mission.
Vision:
To promote the development and advancement of women leaders in the aviation industry
Mission:
Engage with CEOs and other senior executives to build awareness and develop actionable strategies to promote the development and advancement of women leaders in the aviation industry, with a commitment to the belief that engagement with our senior male colleagues is critical to driving change for women in our business
The next Chapter
Advancing Women in Aviation Roundtable (AWAR) welcomes Emily Wicker as its new president, effective 1 July 2022.
Ms. Wicker was unanimously approved by the Board of Directors to assume the presidency of the organization, succeeding AWAR co-founder Amelia Anderson, who has transitioned to the position of president emeritus and treasurer.
Ms. Wicker is a partner in the New York office of the law firm Clifford Chance and a member of the Global Asset Finance team. Emily joined Clifford Chance as a partner in 2013, and has experience in all aspects of aircraft finance, leasing and related restructuring transactions, including EETCs and other structured finance transactions. Emily advises clients across the commercial aviation, cargo and business jet sectors. Emily is listed as a “Leading Lawyer” by in The Legal 500 US Transport: Aviation and Air Travel- Finance. She is ranked in the “Band 2” tier of Aviation Finance lawyers in Chambers USA.
Before joining Clifford Chance, Emily was counsel at Debevoise & Plimpton where she represented Delta Air Lines in its EETC financings and American Airlines in its Chapter 11 reorganization. She started her career at Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft, where she represented Northwest Airlines in leasing, financing and EETC transactions and in its Chapter 11 reorganization.
“I am deeply honored to succeed Amelia Anderson as president of AWAR,” Ms. Wicker said. “Amelia played a leading role in advancing and promoting women in our industry both through her professional activity and by literally building this organization from the ground up. I could never fill her shoes, but I look forward to collaborating with Amelia and leading the board of AWAR as champions of diversity and inclusion in aviation globally.”
“We could not be happier to welcome Emily as the next president of AWAR,” Ms. Anderson said. “She is a consummate professional, a highly respected legal mind, and a long-time champion for diversity, equity & inclusion in our industry. With her passion and her vision for the future, Emily is exactly the right person to lead AWAR into its next chapter, solidifying our position as the industry’s thought leader in DE&I, and growing our role as a key component of our sponsors’ ESG initiatives.”
AWAR is deeply grateful to Amelia for her service as president and her leadership of AWAR through its first seven years. We look forward to the next leg of our journey to advance women in aviation under Emily’s leadership.
QUICK FACTS
FOUNDED
2015
BOARD OF
DIRECTORS
GLOBAL REACH
Industry-leading events on four continents
SPONSOR
PARTNERS
40+
AWAR was founded in 2015 under the principles of Equity and Inclusion. From our very beginning we set out a mission to build awareness and develop actionable strategies to promote the development and advancement of women leaders in the aviation industry.
To that end, we are proud to support the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals # 5 Gender Equality and #10 Reduced Inequalities.
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Explore our events
Through its professionalism and its highly impactful events, AWAR has burnished a reputation as the thought leader in women’s advancement in the aviation industry and is especially acclaimed for our highly effective outreach and inclusion of our senior male colleagues. We are proud to count some of the most influential male and female leaders in the industry as regular AWAR attendees, and some of the most notable companies in the sector as financial sponsors.
John Slattery
President & CEO, Embraer Commercial Aviation
“I see diversity as critical to Embraer’s continued success as a company. Without innovation we don’t survive, and we need diverse perspectives – across genders, races, ethnicities, etc. – to fuel that innovation. I was impressed that AWAR is focused on the business case for diversity, and on actionable strategies for business leaders to break down barriers to diversity. Bravo to AWAR for their outstanding work. Keep it up!”
Alec Burger
President, GE Capital and President & CEO, GECAS
“Attending AWAR’s luncheon provided fresh perspectives on workplace diversity – a critical component to the success of any business today. AWAR is an inventive forum to engage leaders on developing women in the talent pipeline throughout the aviation finance industry.”
Liz Barry
Executive Director and Head of Corporate Affairs, Airbus
“I have been honoured to attend the AWAR lunches in Dublin and the experience is very rewarding. Each of the superb event speakers has stimulated both a real conversation and a real reaction from the aviation industry men and women attending, and these new perspectives have remained with us. The events lead to positive actions in the workplace and around us. I cannot recommend this movement more.”
Dómhnal Slattery
Chief Executive Officer, Avolon
“At Avolon, we are committed to supporting all of our staff irrespective of their gender or background to help them achieve their potential. Like many other areas of business, the aviation sector has traditionally been male-dominated. As a leader within the industry, it is incumbent upon us to make sure that in the future there is a gender balance at every level in the sector. I commend the team at AWAR for the quality of events they produce globally. It is an important platform for driving meaningful change within our sector.”