Alex Adams lived in Uranium City for most of his life, but moved to Saskatoon in August 2021. (Submitted photo/Rise Air)

By Derek Cornet

northern goals

Northerner with dreams of becoming a pilot tours Rise Air

Jan 25, 2024 | 5:04 PM

A young man who dreams of one day becoming a pilot celebrated his 19^th birthday on Wednesday with a special tour of Rise Air operations in Saskatoon.

Alex Adams, who lived for most of his life in the small, remote northern community of Uranium City, has been fascinated with flying since he was a child. He is now in his Grade 12 year at Saskatoon’s Mount Royal Collegiate, but before he relocated, he estimates he flew with Rise Air more than 1,000 times, mostly to attend medical appointments in southern Saskatchewan.

“Throughout the years, I’ve had medical difficulties, so with Rise Air being the only airline, that’s how I got into the company,” Adams said.

“I worked with Snowbird Aviation Services for the summer as a summer student, and it grew me closer to the airline and for me to get my foot in the door in aviation. My visit with Rise Air was really fun. It was good seeing some of my old co-workers who I worked with. They are awesome, supportive and the best people I can call friends.”

During his visit Wednesday to the Rise Air base in Saskatoon, he met with communications and stakeholder relations director Dan Gold, who showed Adams the facility, as well as some of the company’s planes.

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Adams has been a lifelong aviation enthusiast and he explained he loves flying because it gives him such a good feeling to be in the air.

“I want to start my private pilot license as soon as I can,” he said. “There’s a flight school in Saskatoon called Mitchinson Flight Centre and that’s where I want to do my flight training.”

Tracy Young-McLean, Vice-President of Human Resources and Corporate Services, said Adams would be a welcome addition to the Rise Air family regardless of his position.

“Alex is passionate and knowledgeable,” she said in a media release issued Thursday. “He has volunteered at the aviation museum and was part of our summer student program working in our facilities department in 2023. We are excited to see what he accomplishes in the future.”

Rise Air is 100 per cent Indigenous-owned by the communities it serves across northern Saskatchewan. The airline is committed to increasing Indigenous employment and representation across the organization.

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derek.cornet@pattisonmedia.com