I’ve had the opportunity to change for the (Boeing 787) Dreamliner and the 777, but I didn’t want to. “I’ve been flying the A330 for about 15 years. “I don’t know how the Airbus people found out about my retirement, but they came to congratulate me” Monday morning, Castonguay said. Toulouse is where the European plane manufacturer’s headquarters are located. He’ll now be able to display a scale model of the plane at home, courtesy of Airbus officials, who gave him one Monday before takeoff. He or she is also responsible for standard operating procedures and fleet manuals, while looking after the airline’s relationship with the aircraft manufacturer.Ĭastonguay’s career has taken him around the globe, with stops as distant from Montreal as Hong Kong, Seoul and Singapore.Įven today, he says the A330 - 18 units of which are part of the Air Canada fleet, with two more coming soon - remains his favourite aircraft. He then rejoined Air Canada, where he worked as a flight instructor, base manager and fleet manager before being named chief pilot for the A330 wide-body jetliner in August 2017.Ī chief pilot handles technical issues regarding an aircraft and oversees all pilots qualified on that type of plane. He joined Air Canada in 1986, initially flying such jets as the Boeing 727, the Bombardier CRJ and the McDonnell Douglas DC-9.Īfter being laid off in the early 1990s, Castonguay spent about two years operating Boeing 727s and 757s for the now-defunct Quebec-based carriers Nationair and Royal Airlines, according to his LinkedIn page. International Civil Aviation Organization standards require captains of large transport aircraft to be under age 65.Ĭastonguay began his career in general aviation, cutting his teeth on smaller planes such as the twin-engine Piper Navajo and the Convair 580 turboprop. She’s very good.” Photo by John Mahoney / Montreal Gazetteįlying, the elder Castonguay said after the howling had died down, “is a passion that I will have all my life. “I’m very proud to be passing the baton to her,” retiring Air Canada pilot Jean Castonguay said of his daughter, First Officer Marie-Pierre. He also had to stand stoically as his daughter cut his black tie in half with a pair of scissors, eliciting much laughter from the gathering. He took time to shake hands and trade smiles with everyone, accepting wishes for a happy retirement. She’s very good.”Īs he reached the arrivals terminal, Castonguay was greeted by family members and more than 20 current and former work colleagues, who gave him a thunderous ovation. It’s as if his career is continuing through me.”Īdded the beaming father: “I’m very proud to be passing the baton to her. I’m lucky to be flying the same plane, the A330, which we both love. We felt so privileged to be experiencing this moment together,” the younger Castonguay, an Air Canada pilot since 2019 who took her first flying lessons at age 15, said Monday afternoon in Dorval after the pair had cleared customs. While this wasn’t the first time the pair had flown together, the special occasion will live long in their memories. Castonguay, who will turn 65 in March, had a familiar face beside him in the cockpit for his final transatlantic journey: his daughter Marie-Pierre, 28, a first officer with the airline.
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