The sailing will take place on International Women’s Day on 8 March 2020 on board the brand’s newest ship, CELEBRITY EDGE, as part of its initiative to #BRIDGEthegap. There will three British women in the 27-strong female crew onboard Celebrity Edge, including first officer Rachel Arnold, cruise director Sue Denning and guest relations director Jule Sherrington.
Captain McCue, who is the first American cruise ship captain, will be at the helm and will be accompanied by 26 other women to create an all-female bridge and officer leadership team.
“Excitement does not even begin to describe how I’m feeling about working alongside these incredible, barrier-breaking women on Celebrity Edge for this truly historic sailing. I am inspired every day by the amazing women we have working throughout this organization – both on land and at sea. They’re proof that there’s power in diversity,” stated Captain McCue.
Senior vice president of global marine operations for Royal Caribbean Cruises, Patrik Dahlgren, who has spearheaded Celebrity Cruises’ bridge diversification efforts under the leadership of Lutoff-Perlo, added: “Since 2015, we have raised the percentage of qualified women on our navigational bridges from 3 per cent to 22 per cent. Now, we hope this all-time industry-high will continue to grow; we just need more women to raise their hands for careers at sea, especially in engineering.”
The company stated that although only 2% of the world’s mariners are women, its bridge teams are 22% female.
As part of this sailing, Celebrity is adding specialty topical programming, including gallery exhibitions and art auctions featuring female artists; a cinema series featuring female directors, leads and inspirational narratives; and other dedicated events.
Maritime Business World