After 37 years in the skies, Montreal Air Canada pilot shares final flight with daughter

Retiring Air Canada pilot Jean Castonguay and his daughter, First Office Marie Pier, flew home to Montreal on his final flight on Monday, Dec. 11, 2023. (Submitted photo)

As retiring Air Canada pilot Captain Jean Castonguay touched down in Montreal Monday night for the last time, there was a special guest in the cockpit for his final day on the job: his daughter.

Castonguay ended his impressive 37-year flying career with his daughter, Marie Pierre, as his First Officer.

"I was looking at my daughter and doing procedures, things we have to do to have a safe flight and I was impressed. I'm very proud of my daughter and it was emotional, a bit," Castonguay told CJAD 800 Radio host Andrew Carter the morning of his first day of retirement.

The seasoned pilot was Air Canada's Montreal-based chief pilot for the Airbus A330 and shared the milestone flight with Marie-Pier, who is also based in Montreal. The flying duo arrived at Trudeau airport from Toulouse, France.

Over the span of nearly four decades, Castonguay said a lot has changed from his view in the pilot's chair, particularly the controls of the flight deck, which he said "makes the job safer."

"If you look at the DC-9 cockpit, you will understand what we had to watch, compared to what we have on the 330 centralized computer that will basically warn you that there's a problem with the system," he explained.

Now, he's passing the torch to his daughter, whose passion for flying came at a very young age — at 15, she flew an airplane before she could drive a car.

"Definitely, having my dad as a pilot was good. I guess it made me realize that it was an option for me. So that definitely helped in the fact that he was able to mentor me and my career," she said Tuesday.

As he begins his retirement, Castonguay said he's looking forward to taking care of his growing family, including another grandchild who is on the way.

"I'll be busy on that front."

• Listen on CJAD 800: Montreal pilot retires after 37 years, passes torch to daughter