Charlie L.

Charlie is a 33-year-old proud member of the Fort McKay First Nation. He was born and raised in Fort McKay, but after graduation moved to the Northwest Territories.

Fort McKay ISETS has been sponsoring Charlie since he started his aviation career path after high school, and while he was completing his college diploma for Aircraft Maintenance. After Charlie obtained his Aircraft Maintenance Engineer’s License he completed a Bachelor of Business Administration Aviation Degree at The University of Fraser Valley, and trained as both an airplane and helicopter pilot. He also attended both the Robinson R22/44/66 Helicopter and Lycoming Factory Piston Engine Courses.

The beginning of the program occurred in the classroom. Once the technicalities were finished, a typical day was mornings in the classroom and afternoons in the hangar taking apart helicopters and engines.

One of the biggest benefits Charlie found during these courses was learning from the people who actually build the helicopters and engines. “I have a big background in aviation both flying and mechanical so I really enjoyed learning about things buried within the ‘fine print’ of the manuals, and knowing all the specific details of how things are built and why they are designed a certain way,” he says.

For Charlie, the highlight of the Robinson R22/44/66 Helicopter and Lycoming Factory Piston Engine Courses was being able to fly his own airplanes to both courses.

“I felt safer transporting myself rather than flying commercial. It took all day to get from Calgary to LA; the first leg was from Calgary to Great Falls, Montana to clear customs into the USA. Leaving Great Falls I went to Twin Falls, Idaho for a fuel stop. After Twin Falls I landed at the North Las Vegas airport and got to see the Vegas strip from the air. From Vegas to LA is only another hour flight where the Robinson Factory is located.

Ten days later I had to go to the other course which was on the other side of the country in Pennsylvania. Leaving California, I flew over the Grand Canyon and New York to orbit around the Statue of Liberty. Finally, on my way home after the engine course in Pennsylvania, I made a quick detour past Mount Rushmore. The entire trip was over 5000 miles from coast to coast and turned out to be a memorable trip and a great learning experience.” says Charlie.

When asked he would tell someone who is thinking about taking either the Robinson R22/44/66 Helicopter and Lycoming Factory Piston Engine Courses, here’s what he says: “The course I took was very specialized and designed for maintenance personnel so its application is very limited but I would highly recommend both the Robinson and Lycoming Factory Courses.”

Service Canada-Indigenous Skill Employment and Training (ISET) supported this client through the Fort McKay First Nation ISETS Department.