On a hilltop overlooking a river canyon somewhere in Canada many generations ago, a First Nations elder might have watched an eagle soar gracefully along on the winds and wondered what it would be like if he too could fly. That would respect his Indigenous belief that humans are deeply connected to everything they see—the wind, water, animals, sky and the Earth itself.
Fast-forward to today, and the First Peoples’ Aviation Technology Program at Ontario, Canada’s First Nations Technical Institute is making that wish a reality. For many of the flight students in the program, their ultimate goal is not to end up with an airline job; instead, they desire to become certified by Transport Canada so they can go back home and serve their communities as commercial pilots.
