With the aim of empowering the next generation of women in aviation, Air Canada’s fifth annual 2024 Judy Cameron Scholarship awards are now open to prospective female pilots and aircraft maintenance engineers, with the application window available until Nov. 30.

Presented in conjunction with CAE and the North Lights Aero Foundation, the fifth annual scholarship award is named after trailblazing Judy Cameron – hired in 1978 as Air Canada’s first-ever female pilot, and who went on to become a captain in 1997 as well as the first female captain of a Boeing 777 in 2010 during her 40-year aviation career.

Of the eight scholarship recipients, four who are training to be commercial pilots will join the CAE Women in Flight program as ambassadors.

“As this scholarship goes into its fifth year, it is incredibly gratifying to see the accomplishments of previous recipients. These young women have realized their dreams and are soaring high in all regions of Canada,” says the retired Cameron, who is now Director of the Northern Lights Aero Foundation. “From the cockpit of a 737 to a flight instructor job, these scholarship recipients are wonderful role models. I am so proud of Air Canada and CAE’s support for Canadian women in aviation.”

Murray Strom, Sr. VP, Flight Operations and Maintenance at Air Canada adds, “It makes me, and everyone at Air Canada, extremely proud to see the success of many of our past recipients of the Captain Judy Cameron Scholarship. Already, some have achieved their goals of becoming commercial pilots or aircraft maintenance engineers and I look forward to seeing their careers progress. And the future is bright not only for them, but the next group of recipients as we celebrate the fifth anniversary of this wonderful scholarship…”

The scholarships were launched in 2019 and initially awarded to four recipients. Since 2023, Air Canada and CAE have joined forces to double the number of recipients and award eight scholarships to deserving women.

Applications can be made HERE.