Captain Patrick Charette

Snowbird 3, Inner Left Wing

Captain (Capt) Patrick Charette was born in Winnipeg, Manitoba, and grew up on the North Shore of Montréal, Quebec. He joined the Canadian Armed Forces in 2008 while completing a bachelor’s degree in Biological Sciences at the University of Montréal. 

Capt Charette received his Royal Canadian Air Force pilot wings in 2013 at 2 Canadian Forces Flying Training School in Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan. He then trained on the CT-155 Hawk before serving as a Qualified Flying Instructor on the CT-156 Harvard II, reaching an A-Category rating and also teaching at the Flying Instructor School.

In 2017, he was assigned to the CP-140 Aurora, first to 407 Squadron in Comox, British Columbia, as a Long Range Patrol Captain, then in 2022 to 404 Squadron in Greenwood, Nova Scotia, as a flying instructor. During his time on the Aurora, he completed multiple deployments on Operation NEON and Operation REASSURANCE as well as numerous exercises around the world.

Captain Charette joined the Snowbirds in 2024 and brings over 3,200 hours of military flying experience to the team.