Alice Bouché Écalle deeply inspired those who knew her while she was alive. We hope she will continue to inspire many others through her memory.

In October 2010, Alice Écalle (age 34), her husband Renaud (age 29), and their children, Adrien (age 3) and Louise (age 1), were flying home in their small plane in southern France when it crashed in torrential rain, fog, and 50 mph gusts of wind, tragically killing all four.

Renaud was a French air force captain and the reigning world aerobatic champion, and his legacy was extensively covered by the press. Though only noted as his wife in the press coverage of their deaths, Alice was an accomplished and ambitious pilot herself. Her dream was to join a commercial airline but she faced discrimination for having young children. At the time, airline interviewers in France openly expressed the view that women could not fulfill both the role of mother and pilot.

Recognizing that the future of flight is female, airlines around the world have since modernized their hiring practices. Still, disproportionate barriers stand in the way for mothers pursuing careers in commercial aviation. The Alice Écalle Memorial Scholarship aims to alleviate some of the financial burden of flight training, the cost of which has kept been a hindrance for women providing for their families.

Women currently account for 5% of professional pilots around the world. We believe this statistic must change. With your support, we are able to honor the legacy of an ambitious, charismatic, and barrier-breaking mother and pilot by helping more women like her pursue their dreams.

Thank you for your interest and generosity in honoring Alice’s life.