What do you do after dedicating 38 years of your life to the Royal Canadian Air Force? For Michel Latouche it was aerospace consulting.
“I got hired by a company, worked for them for two years and went, ‘No, I’d like to do this, but give back to veterans,'” he said. So, he and his wife Gail started the Manitoba-based Veterans Elite drone Training Services (VEdTS) in March 2023.
He said they’ve already provided drone training to over 200 veterans across Canada. He said demand is driven by a number of factors.
“A lot of veterans have retired and have issues with transition or (post-traumatic stress disorder) PTSD. We found that learning to fly drones is given them a little bit of a sense of purpose,” he said.
Nick Lisney retired from the air force, after trying five times, in 2022. He served for 32 years and 125 days.
“It was difficult because you get up every morning and say, ‘Oh yeah, I don’t have to go to work today. What am I going to do today?’ So it got a little interesting. My wife was like, ‘Go do something,'” he said. “The transition was difficult, like getting out of the military.”
Now he is an instructor with VEdTS, and said that transition was much easier, especially having been a flight instructor during his time with the force.
It’s a bonus reconnecting with people he served with.
“It’s nice, because even today, there’s guys I haven’t seen for years,” Lisney said. “There’s a post-military career social network, and it’s fun. I enjoy it.”
Bill McLean, who spent 31 years as an intelligence officer, and is now a graduated student from VEdTS, said the camaraderie in the group runs deep.
“You can take the person out of the uniform, but you can’t take the uniform of the person. So you always have that connection… When I came on my course, I ran into a guy I hadn’t seen in 10 years. Today, I’ve met a couple other guys that I hadn’t seen for years as well,” he said.
“It is amazing to see how veterans can help veterans through a program such as this.”
While McLean said he has no background in aviation, he’s considering becoming an instructor with the program.
“The course does give you that confidence to be able to step outside an area that you might feel very comfortable in. And, you know, that’s when you grow. Not only professionally, but personally.”
McLean said VEdTS also opens up new career opportunities for ex-military personnel.
“I don’t think you can see your real estate ad now, or post it, without a drone fly through,” he said, adding, “Interesting drone work is being done on the windmills that you see to determine the stress fractures… so, the farmers are using them for their fields. It’s amazing what it opens up to us.”
Latouche said a dozen grads have already launched their own companies, adding the training is accessible to all veterans.
“We’ve trained veterans in wheelchairs, we’ve trained female veterans, we’ve trained Indigenous veterans. Veterans Affairs Canada can help you with the funding as well,” he said.
Course costs can be found online at vedts.ca/courses.