Virgin Atlantic replaces flying lady emblem with diverse range of men and women

Airline Virgin Atlantic will replace its famous flying lady with a range of five new ‘flying icons’ to represent ‘modern Britain’.

The diverse range of men and women will feature on four of the new A350 aircraft this year and a further eight aircraft by 2021.

Still adorned with the flag of Great Britain and wearing a red leotard, the company claim to be the first airline to have male figureheads on its aircraft.

The new high flyers represent a gay man in rainbow lycra, a black man and woman and an Asian woman.

Virgin said the new icons represent its ambition for gender and diversity balance in the workplace, and support for people of all sexualities.

The move follows Virgin’s pledge to have an equal number of men and women  in leadership roles, as well as 12% BAME representation, by 2022.

Nikki Humphrey, SVP of people at Virgin Atlantic said: “The saying goes ‘You can’t be what you can’t see’ and that has never been truer than the aviation industry’s glamorous image in the past.”

“We have been working for a number of years to tackle our gender pay gap, create an inclusive workplace and increase the diversity of our workforce, through the development of our Springboard scheme for women, as well as the launch of engineering apprenticeships.

“By introducing our new Flying Icons I hope it encourages people from all backgrounds to feel at home flying with us, but also working with us.”

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