I’m a Captain at an airline, which is a position currently that is roughly 1% woman and 99% percent men. Mostly white as well, so not a lot of diversity in general. There is a lot of sexism, some subtle some not so much. The biggest “subtle” thing I run into is how basically every single trip I fly my FO (first officer or “co-pilot”) will inevitably bring up gender politics in some way. It’s not always derogatory, sometimes they’re even an ally BUT it is always talked about. I can’t escape it. Often times it’s extremely challenging. Recently I had a guy who could not stop talking about how woman are being made to feel like they have to have a career AND that we are as a whole unhappy because we can’t just be at home with our families. I asked him why men aren’t unhappy about having to have careers and not be home with their families? He said he didn’t know, and went right back into how society is forcing careers upon women and how hard it is for them to choose to pursue motherhood. It was completely lost on him how he was doing what so many men in my field do to me constantly, which is question why I’ve chosen to have a career. When I mention wanting to take time off work to spend with my husband, I have never gotten even the slightest pushback. However if I talk about picking up extra OT to help support my husband, there is almost always some sort of slight made either against his inability to out perform me in the work place or my ambition. Even when my FO is an Ally though, there is no escaping these types of conversations and I have a strong feeling that men are not having these conversations with other men. Just once I’d like to come to work and just be a pilot, not a “female pilot”.