Episode 24- Melissa Haney

Melissa Haney is originally from Inukjuak, Quebec. A small fly-in only community on the Hudson Bay. Flying in and out regularly growing up, she never thought of flying as a career. 

She attended Concordia University and was not too sure what she wanted to do for a career. She applied at Air Inuit as a flight attendant for a new challenge, September 11th, 2001 was her first day solo as a Flight Attendant. As much as this day was to change aviation worldwide, it made her realize how much she wanted to be a part of the industry. After a year working as a flight attendant, she decided to begin flight training having heard the stories from the pilots she worked with. 

She attended Cornwall Aviation and completed her commercial/multi IFR in 9 months. She started in the Air Inuit ground school for the Twin Otter soon after; now having the opportunity to work above and see the vast Nunavik tundra from a different view. 

After gaining experience she moved to the Dash 8 as a first officer. In 2016 she was promoted to Captain on the Dash 8 and was the first female Inuit Captain. In 2017 the Canadian 99s honored her with a commemorative stamp for this accomplishment. In the last year she has become the assistant chief pilot for Dash 8 operations at Air Inuit and is also the coordinator for the Sparrow Program which supports Inuit youth pursuing their pilot licence. 

Living in the beautiful Eastern Townships and raising 2 young children she also promotes women in aviation as the Quebec Ambassador for the Elevate Aviation Wing. Melissa can be found on Instagram @nunavikflygal and on LinkedIn by searching her name.