Media Advisories

BAGOTVILLE – It is with great honour that Colonel Yvan Blondin, Commander 3 Wing, will preside over the ceremony in which Brigadier-General (retired) Jean-Michel Comtois, former Commander 3 Wing, will take over the responsibilities of Honorary Colonel of the Wing. The ceremony will take place on 28 January 2005 at 10:30 AM, and will mark the end of Honorary Colonel Michel Doyon’s mandate.

A fighter pilot by training, BGen (ret’d) Comtois knows Bagotville well. In addition to having commanded 3 Wing from 1990 to 1993, he piloted the CF-101 Voodoo and CF-18 at Bagotville, and served as Commanding Officer 425 Tactical Fighter Squadron. “I am very honoured to be appointed Honorary Colonel and be contributing once again to Bagotville’s development. Now more than ever, the Canadian Forces need people from the community who get involved and support the work of our members,” said BGen (ret’d) Comtois. He added that he had helped get the Bagotville Air Defence Museum off the ground and that he wanted to continue to contribute to its success.

The responsibilities of an Honorary Colonel include advising the Commander; developing, promoting and ensuring strong community support for the Wing; establishing and maintaining a liaison with the Commander as well as with other persons with honorary appointments; and participating in parades and official functions in which the unit takes part.

BGen (ret’d) Comtois was born in Quebec City. He joined the Air Force in 1966. He has accumulated more than 3,600 hours of flying time in fighter planes, and has held several important positions including Director Air Plans at Air Staff; Director of NORAD Binational Command at Cheyenne Mountain, Colorado, and Deputy Commander Continental United States NORAD Region (CONR) at Tyndall Air Force Base in Florida, where he was responsible for more than 10,000 people in charge of making NORAD surveillance equipment and fighter planes work across the United States. In February 2000, he joined CMC Electronics as Assistant to the President and Vice-President, Government Relations and, since 2002, as Vice-President, Public and Government Affairs.