Last Wednesday was an exciting day at the Air Canada headquarters as we welcomed young women to our Montreal base to discover the world of global aviation. An annual event in the autumn, we hold an open house to female students and young women aged 15 years old and older to meet with professionals from the company to explore the exciting, multi-disciplinary career options in aviation.

Throughout the day, the students and young women had the opportunity to learn about the breadth of career opportunities at Air Canada and meet inspiring female professionals.  They got to explore the world of finance in the aviation industry, supply chain management, maintenance planning, business transformation, information technology, law, strategic procurement, development, cargo operations, and branding, among others. After discovering what our industry has to offer, they embarked on a guided tour of Air Canada’s Montreal office museum which details the more than 85-year history of the iconic flag carrier and was followed by a hangar visit to get up very close to an aircraft.

“We are all passionate about what we do here at Air Canada. It is this passion that we want to share with young women who might not immediately think about aviation as a career path,” says Capucine Michaud, Director Cabin Standards and Maintenance Program, who puts together this event every year, along with colleagues from many other departments. “When you think about the aviation industry, your mind obviously goes to pilots and flight attendants, but we have all sorts of different fields here! The airline industry is mostly perceived as male dominated and our hope is that female students leave today knowing that they have a place in this exciting, international industry if they wish to join it.”

Organizing this event is part of Air Canada’s mission to inspire the next generation of women to pursue a career in aviation, promote non-traditional jobs, break stereotypes and support women in achieving their aviation goals.

Since 2019, the airline also sponsors the annual Captain Judy Cameron Scholarships awarded in conjunction with the Northern Lights Aero Foundation, established in honour of Air Canada’s first female pilot to help foster the next generation of women following in her trailblazing footsteps. The applications for the scholarship are currently open.

Also, earlier this year, Air Canada also announced an agreement with seven colleges across the country to provide financial assistance to students who self-identify as women or visible minorities and who are pursuing studies as Aircraft Maintenance Engineers (AMEs). The airline was the main sponsor of this year’s Ninety-Nines International Conference and Career Expo that took place in Vancouver, BC in July as well as the Canadian Women in Aviation (CWIA) conference in Montreal in May.