Ontario Aerospace Council appoints Natasha Gagnon as CEO

Ontario Aerospace Council appoints Natasha Gagnon as CEO

New leader to focus on advocacy, member services and increased industry collaboration

Toronto, Ontario, December 4, 2023 – The Ontario Aerospace Council announced today that Natasha Gagnon has been named as the organization’s new chief executive officer, succeeding the late Moira Harvey. Gagnon had been serving as interim CEO since Harvey’s passing in March 2023. After reviewing the credentials of multiple applicants, Gagnon was selected by OAC’s board of directors to lead the organization.

“Natasha Gagnon has served the OAC and its members with distinction since joining the organization almost eight years ago and especially as interim CEO in recent months,” said Dwayne Charette, OAC board chair, as well as president and chief operating officer of Airbus Helicopters Canada. “The executive committee applauds her dedication and recognizes her vision for building on the OAC’s strengths as our new CEO. The aerospace industry faces unprecedented challenges to meet ambitious sustainability goals, increase competitiveness through innovation, plus attract and retain diverse talent. Natasha has an innate appreciation for how to address these challenges here in Ontario.”

As CEO, Gagnon’s responsibilities include defining and executing the organization’s vision, mission and strategic plan; managing operations and programming; building and nurturing stakeholder relationships across industry, government and academia; developing and maintaining a diverse membership ecosystem; identifying new business opportunities and partnerships; and serving as a spokesperson at trade shows, conferences and other venues.

“I sincerely thank the OAC’s board of directors for this vote of confidence to lead our association as we continue to evolve the organization in service to our members,” said Gagnon of her appointment. “I am honoured as CEO to offer a voice that is united with partners across industry. Our programming will serve the needs of our membership while we work with government at all levels to maximize our competitiveness in an increasingly global industry. We’ll do this by clearly articulating our perspective with policymakers to reinforce our position as a regional powerhouse with global influence.”

Natasha Gagnon joined the OAC in February 2016 as manager for special projects. In subsequent years, she earned promotions to senior manager and then vice president, assuming additional responsibilities relating to operations, as well as program creation and execution on behalf of the organization’s membership. OAC flagship offerings now include missions to major aerospace events including the biennial Paris and Farnborough International Airshows, annual Aerospace Unplugged headliner event, Beyond the Barriers Research & Technology Days, Aero+B2BeeMatch business development platform, and the Competencies Online Advancement Skills & Training (COAST) program.

In advocating for industry, Natasha Gagnon was appointed to the Ontario Advanced Manufacturing Council tasked with providing recommendations to Ontario Minister Victor Fedeli.

Prior to joining the OAC, Natasha Gagnon held key positions in the public sector as a trade officer with UK Trade & Investment at the British Consulate-General in Montréal, and positions in the private sector both in Canada and France within the investor relations, wellness and advertising sectors. Gagnon earned her Bachelor of Social Science degree in economics from the University of Ottawa.