Flying High

Commercial airline pilot Jo Anne Toral shares the rewards and pitfalls of being a woman in a male-dominated industry.

- Gaby Ignacio

IT STARTED WHEN I WAS AROUND FIVE OR SIX YEARS OLD, when I would see my dad, who was also a pilot, say goodbye in full uniform before going to work. I told him I wanted to fly, and I can vividly remember how he reacted. He didn’t want to discourage me, but he didn’t want to encourage me either. They didn’t prefer women in aviation is what he said. Nerbyosa daw kasi ang babae.

So I gave up on the idea and became a registered nurse. I tried looking for a job for a year, but at the time it was very hard to find one, so I tried out for a flight attendant position at Philippine Airlines. I didn’t tell my parents because I knew they would get mad—it was only when I was accepted that I let them know. I was with PAL for three years, until I took up flying in 2015 at Alpha Aviation.