QuestUAV DroneGirls hit out at “Sexist” Comments
Jo Harris, female marketing consultant at QuestUAV wrote an article entitled “Drone Boys vs Drone Girls” on 22 Feb 2017.
sUAS News received a complaint following the publishing of the article complaining that the article was “flagrantly sexist, male-centric and benighted”. The complainant went on the say “You owe your readers, both female and male, an apology for posting such a degrading article.”
The following is a statement from QuestUAV director Nigel King, defending the author of the original article “Drone Boys vs Drone Girls”.
By Nigel King. Director of Drone Girls. QuestUAV
“Jo Harris, my marketing publicist, is a DroneGirl through and through, having been in the industry for five years now. She was itching to write a piece on one of her favourite subjects; 
That woman have as
much a right to a role in the drone world as anyone. (And by a process of deduction that simply means as much as any man!).
I gave her my blessing. And then hid under the desk….
Now we have a saying here in the North of England. Jo Harris “isn’t backwards in coming forward”.
It means she is pretty outspoken. Most DroneGirls are.
In fact, let me tell you a little about my female staff in general…… the “DroneGirls” of QuestUAV.
Kerstin Traut, international drone operative, the smallest of my DroneGirls, can throw me to the ground quicker than anyone I know. Donna can organise accounts better than a Ninja warrior can dispatch enemy heads. Heather is fearless, loves her bright red lipstick and tells me I don’t work hard enough. Actually so does Jess, my granddaughter (part-time worker). Jo Harris looks after a family of five and still manages at least four days a week at work. Carla Taylor named a “Cutie” in the complaint promptly sent a LinkedIn invitation to the guy who wrote the complaint and shared some of her personal views. Between them all, they do a hundred different jobs including, yes, drone stuff.
Don’t you love it that kind of variety and uniqueness? I do! Life wouldn’t be the same around here.
So, who was to know that Jo and her DroneGirl colleagues, in all their feminine uniqueness, would be then hailed as (I quote)
“Flagrantly sexist, male-centric and benighted”. degrading their own feminine uniqueness in 
a “demeaning”, “sexual” and “callow” way.
For real? Having read the complaint, the pink flight-line naturally looked at each other with that “very confused” look. And then took great interest in the writer of the complaint… Believe me; it’s a dangerous situation for a bloke to be in the middle of.
Their accuser is, it seems, a MALE drone business owner unable to identify Jo’s sense of humour OR identity as a the DroneGirl who penned the article (Two pictures of her in the article).
When I asked Jo for a statement on the validity of the complaint Jo said in typical Jo Harris simplicity….
“Idiot”.
The complainant has since requested to withhold his complaint from being published but has demanded an apology from sUAS News on behalf of the rest of the world.
Well, truly, to anyone who has been offended (only one that we can make out so far) we offer our genuine apologies. There is no offence made at all. We hope that any reader can read between the lines of humour to the real message that each DroneGirl is a professional and rightly treated (and paid) as such.
My message to Mr Fox is; “Do you really want to take these DroneGirls own self-expression and competence out of their own hands and protect them with some faux grandeur that you want to call anti-feminism? If so I suggest you go and find a woman who doesn’t want to have a door opened for her and then don’t open the door for her. Just don’t try it on here. It’s not welcome.”
Kerstin, DroneGirl, also had something piercing to say.
“I’ve travelled the world, operating complex UAVs all over the world and done missions that Luke probably can’t even dream about. I’m not an arrogant person. I know about my knowledge and my skills, and therefore this article isn’t sexist at all. I feel like I am a professional UAV operator and this article was just an interesting way to show our take on DroneGirls in the industry. It was an ironic piece phrased in an unassuming way to show our presence in the drone world.”
To read the original article or find out more on the work of QuestUAV and its DroneGirls visit www.QuestUAV.com
Carla and Nigel from QuestUAV will join us on our weekly hangout tonight, 21:00 GMT
