INUVIK
One Easter, when Fred Carmichael was about 12, his mother and sister went into Aklavik from their trap line, sending back a charter plane full of groceries and supplies to him and his father at the camp.

Fred Carmichael bought his first airplane in the mid 1950s and has owned one ever since. Now both his son and grandson are pilots and he has led a number of Inuvik residents into the industry as well. - photo courtesy of Fred Carmichael

It crested the horizon and landed before the pilot and Carmichael's father unloaded the groceries. Seeing the boy's interest, the pilot kindly let him see the inside of the plane.

"I was just tickled," Carmichael said. "I saw him take off, and I thought that was really something. It just stayed with me."

More than 60 years later, Carmichael is being inducted into the Canadian Aviation Hall of Fame for his accomplishments as an aviation entrepreneur, search and rescue pilot, and pioneer aboriginal commercial pilot. Accolades are nothing new to Carmichael, who was made a member of the Order of Canada in 2010. But he said this one is special.

"A lot of people out there deserve it," he said, noting that he doesn't envy the selection committee their task. "The way I look at it, it wouldn't have happened if it weren't for the people around me. I'm accepting on behalf of everyone who supported me."

Whether he was rescuing stranded hunters as a pilot, advocating for aboriginal independence as president of the Gwich'in Tribal Council, or advancing exploration in the territory as chairperson of the Aboriginal Pipeline Group, Carmichael's achievements in the North have set him apart.

Still, a lot has changed in the decades since Carmichael became the first aboriginal person to get his pilot's licence in the NWT.

"Aviation played a huge role in the development of the North, long before I came along," he said, adding that his own career came at the tail end of the era of the great bush pilots. "It used to be that as a bush pilot, you were recognized and trusted . you had to know what you were doing or you wouldn't survive. People depended on you."

He said the best times of his life were serving the hunters and trappers, the explorers for oil and gas companies, and the scientists. He said the business used to be much more personal.

Carmichael got his start in aviation courtesy of Don Violette, an Air Force pilot turned missionary in the North, flying the same kind of plane that landed at Carmichael's camp that Easter, right down to the colours. He had some friends in Edmonton and set Carmichael up with a flying instructor there, even finding him a spot at a Bible school so he would have room and board.

"I wound up pretty faithful to his church," Carmichael said. "I had a motive."

While he never finished Bible school, he got the required number of hours of flying to get his private pilot's licence and came back North to work and save up enough to buy a plane.

Violette helped with that as well, wrangling Carmichael his first airplane for a grand total of $2,600. That was in 1957, and he has had an airplane ever since.

Carmichael got his start working as a gopher for Aklavik Flying Service and credits Don Zubko and Mike Zubko as some of his strongest mentors.

Since then, he has worked as a commercial pilot and started two of his own aviation companies, Reindeer Air Service and Antler Aviation. He has mentored young pilots and helped others get their start in the industry.

"I always encourage them. I tell them, 'If I can do it, you can do it,'" he said. "My advice is always to get an education."

Carmichael said he used to go into the schools and talk to students about being a pilot. Clearly, he was convincing, as many young aboriginal men followed in his footsteps, including his son and now his grandson, who is a helicopter pilot.

"In any field, if you do a good job, you want to help others do the same," he said. "That's the beauty of the North, any small town. You can make that difference . It's been a good life. I wouldn't change it for a thing."

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