MONTREAL, March 6,
2025 /CNW/ - In celebration of International Women's
Day on March 8, Air Canada and CAE
proudly announce the eight winners of the 2025 Captain Judy Cameron
Scholarships. The two Montreal-based global aviation companies have
again joined forces to award scholarships to eight women from
across Canada who are pursuing
careers as commercial pilots or aircraft maintenance engineers.
The Captain Judy Cameron Scholarship, now in its sixth year, was
established in honour of Air Canada's first female pilot.
Scholarships are awarded annually by Air Canada and CAE, in
conjunction with the Northern Lights Aero Foundation, to
foster the next generation of women in aviation.
"Air Canada is proud to be a leader fostering the next
generation of women pursuing careers as pilots or maintenance
engineers. Initiatives like the Captain Judy Cameron scholarship help inspire and
encourage women undertaking non-traditional aviation careers, which
in turn develop diverse, rich synergies in our industry and
supports young women in STEM," said Arielle Meloul-Wechsler,
Executive Vice President, Chief Human Resources Officer, and Public
Affairs at Air Canada. "Congratulations to this year's
winners!"
"Women will play a key role in meeting the aviation industry's
demand for pilots in the future, and the CAE Women in Flight
program and Captain Judy Cameron
scholarship provide invaluable, merit-based support to deserving
recipients," said Marie-Christine
Cloutier, Vice President, Performance, Strategy and
Marketing at CAE. "It is essential for girls and young women to see
strong role models in aviation, to know that a career in this
industry is not only possible but achievable. By spotlighting the
journeys and achievements of the four CAE Women in Flight
Ambassadors, we hope to inspire the next generation to pursue their
dreams in aviation with confidence and determination, leading to
the success of the industry as a whole."
"The highlight of my year is informing recipients that they are
receiving the Captain Judy Cameron
scholarship. These young women not only excel in their own training
but are actively encouraging other women in their aviation
journeys," said Judy Cameron, Boeing 777 Captain at Air Canada
(retired) and Director of the Northern Lights Aero Foundation. "As
they walk on stage at the Northern Lights Aero Foundation gala on
October 4, I will be filled with
pride to see the future of aviation. Congratulations to all eight
women and to Air Canada and CAE for generously funding the
scholarships."
Biographies of the Captain Judy Cameron Scholarship winners
Air Canada award
recipients:
- Kimberly Ballantyne
- Winnipeg, Manitoba
- Aymie Rioux – Quebec,
Quebec
- Liv Letourneau - Port
Moody, British Columbia
- Trisha Virdee - Innisfil,
Ontario
CAE Women in Flight Ambassadors:
- Neghat Hidari - Mount Brydges, Ontario
- Kayla McNeely - SW Calgary
Alberta
- Arpan Srawn – Edmonton, Alberta
- Miriam Roumia - Waterloo, Ontario
About Captain 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.
Since 2019, Air Canada committed to
awarding $20,000 per year toward the Captain Judy
Cameron scholarship. In 2023, CAE added its support to the
scholarship through its Women in Flight ambassador program.
The Captain Judy Cameron Scholarship is open to women who are
Canadian citizens and who are enrolled in a fixed wing aviation
flight program at a college, university, or flight school, or an
aircraft repair and maintenance program anywhere in Canada.
The Scholarship is administered by the Northern Lights Aero
Foundation, which inspires and celebrates Canadian women in
aviation and aerospace with mentorship, scholarships, a speaker's
bureau, and a junior board, along with an annual award event.
About the CAE Women in Flight Ambassador Program
The CAE Women in Flight ambassador program is helping to create
a movement that encourages young girls and women to dream big and
have no limits. Because women make up a very small percentage of
commercial pilots worldwide, this program shows women that they,
too, can reach for the sky. CAE is partnering with airline
customers globally to provide partially funded and fully funded
pilot training scholarships to deserving women, who also become
program ambassadors who inform and inspire other women to become
pilots.
The program was launched in 2018 and expanded in July
2022 to grow the movement by forging partnerships with more
airline customers. Initially, the program was limited to candidates
enrolled in one of CAE's airline-sponsored cadet training programs.
However, with the program's evolution, CAE now matches existing
airline scholarships. The program aims to build a community of
ambassadors who demonstrate leadership skills, active community
involvement, perseverance, and passion for aviation, and who can
inspire women to join the pilot profession.
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's climate ambition includes a
long-term aspirational goal of net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by
2050. For additional information, please see Air Canada's TCFD disclosure. Air Canada shares are publicly traded on the TSX
in Canada and the OTCQX in the
US.
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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 will 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
SOURCE Air Canada
