- Eight scholarships will be awarded to young Canadian women
studying to become commercial pilots or aircraft maintenance
engineers
- Four aspiring commercial pilots to become CAE Women in
Flight ambassadors
- Scholarship applications open as of Nov. 1 here
MONTREAL, Oct. 31,
2024 /CNW/ - Air Canada and CAE, two Montreal-based global aviation companies,
proudly continue their collaboration in fostering the next
generation of women in non-traditional airline careers through the
Captain Judy Cameron Scholarship, and today announced that
applications for the 2025 edition of the Scholarship will open on
November 1, 2024.
Up to eight young Canadian women studying to become commercial
pilots or aircraft maintenance engineers will be awarded
scholarships to pursue their training in 2025. Among them, four
recipients training to become commercial pilots will join the CAE
Women in Flight program as ambassadors.
"As we go into our sixth year of the Captain Judy Cameron
Scholarships, I am proud to see that past recipients are now first
officers and flight instructors from across Canada. Meeting scholarship recipients at the
Northern Lights Aero Foundation gala each year is the highlight of
the evening for me. These young women are the future of aviation.
They have not only shown determination and excellence in their
training, but they have also encouraged other women by mentoring
and volunteering. Thanks to Air Canada and to CAE for supporting
them in their journey," said Judy
Cameron, Boeing 777 Captain at Air Canada (retired), and
Director, Northern Lights Aero Foundation.
"At Air Canada, we are incredibly proud of the strides taken by
the past recipients of the distinguished Captain Judy Cameron
Scholarship. This initiative is important as we continue our work
developing and supporting the next generation of aviation
professionals. The success of this scholarship is already being
seen, with past recipients achieving their goals of becoming Pilots
or Aircraft Maintenance Engineers," said Murray Strom, Senior
Vice President, Flight Operations and Maintenance at Air
Canada.
"Attracting more women to a career in the flight deck is a
priority of CAE's Women in Flight program, especially as the there
is a projected need for 63,000 commercial pilots in North America by 2032. We are proud to play a
part in broadening the appeal of a career in aviation and
supporting underrepresented groups through initiatives like the
Captain Judy scholarships for aspiring women pilots. As Women in
Flight Ambassadors, CAE's recipients will also become role models
for the young women who will form the next generation of aviation
professionals." said Marie-Christine
Cloutier, CAE's Vice-President, Performance, Strategy and
Marketing.
The annual Captain Judy Cameron Scholarships, established in
honour of Air Canada's first female pilot to help foster the next
generation of women following in her trailblazing footsteps, are
awarded in conjunction with the Northern Lights Aero
Foundation.
The Captain Judy Cameron
scholarships were launched in 2019 and initially awarded to four
recipients. In 2023, Air Canada and CAE joined forces to double the
number of recipients and award eight scholarships to eligible
students.
Scholarship applications open on Nov. 1,
2024 here.
About Judy Cameron
Judy Cameron became the first female pilot hired by Air
Canada, Canada's largest airline, in April
1978 at the age of 23. She was the first woman to graduate
from Selkirk College's Aviation Technology Program in
1975. Throughout her flying career of 40 years and over 23,000
hours, she has flown the DC-3, Twin Otter, Hawker Siddeley 748,
DC-9, Lockheed 1011, Airbus 320, Boeing 767 and Boeing 777 to the
far corners of the world. She became a captain in 1997 and in 2010,
she became the first female captain in Canada of a Boeing
777, the largest aircraft in Air Canada's fleet. She retired in
2015, received the Elsie MacGill Northern Lights award in the
Flight Operations category that year, and in 2016 she was chosen by
the 99s (International Organization of Women Pilots) to be on its
Canadian postage stamp. Today, Captain Cameron continues her
volunteer work mentoring and supporting the next generation of
female pilots with the Northern Lights Aero Foundation.
Air Canada proudly launched
the Captain Judy Cameron Scholarship in her honour in
2019.
About CAE Women in Flight Ambassador Program
CAE's Women in Flight Ambassador program is helping create a
movement to encourage young girls and women to dream big and have
no limits. As only five percent of pilots worldwide are women, this
program is geared to show women that they too can reach for the
sky. The goal of the program is to build a community of ambassadors
who demonstrate leadership skills, active involvement in their
communities, perseverance, who are passionate about aviation,
and inspire women to join the pilot profession.
Launched in 2018, the Women in Flight Ambassador program was
expanded in July 2022 to include
partnerships with more airline customers to increase the number of
scholarships given.
This is a co-branded program in which CAE is partnering with
airline customers globally to create women pilot ambassadors via
scholarships ranging from partially funded to fully funded pilot
training.
To learn more about the program, go to CAE Women in Flight
Ambassador Program | CAE
About Air Canada
Air Canada is Canada's largest airline, the country's flag
carrier and a founding member of Star
Alliance, the world's most comprehensive air transportation
network. Air Canada provides
scheduled service directly to more than 180 airports in
Canada, the United States and Internationally on six
continents. It holds a Four-Star ranking from Skytrax. Air
Canada's Aeroplan program is
Canada's premier travel loyalty
program, where members can earn or redeem points on the world's
largest airline partner network of 45 airlines, plus through an
extensive range of merchandise, hotel and car rental partners.
Through Air Canada Vacations, it offers more travel choices than
any other Canadian tour operator to hundreds of destinations
worldwide, with a wide selection of hotels, flights, cruises, day
tours, and car rentals. Its freight division, Air Canada Cargo,
provides air freight lift and connectivity to hundreds of
destinations across six continents using Air Canada's passenger and
freighter aircraft. Air Canada
aims to achieve an ambitious net zero emissions goal from all
global operations by 2050. Air Canada shares are publicly traded on
the TSX in Canada and the
OTCQX in the US.
About CAE
At CAE, we equip people in critical roles with the expertise and
solutions to create a safer world. As a technology company, we
digitalize the physical world, deploying software-based simulation
training and critical operations support solutions. Above all else,
we empower pilots, cabin crew, maintenance technicians, airlines,
business aviation operators, and defence and security forces to
perform at their best every day and when the stakes are the
highest. Around the globe, we're everywhere customers need us to be
with approximately 13,000 employees in more than 240 sites and
training locations in over 40 countries. CAE represents more than
75 years of industry firsts—the highest-fidelity flight and mission
simulators as well as training programs powered by digital
technologies. We embed sustainability in everything we do. Today
and tomorrow, we'll make sure our customers are ready for the
moments that matter.
Read our FY24 Global Annual Activity and Sustainability
Report.
Follow us on Twitter: @CAE_Inc
Facebook: www.facebook.com/cae.inc
LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/cae
Hashtags: #CAE; #CAEpilot
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