Rod Hayward has had an interesting and diverse career within the aviation industry, as a pilot, engineer, entrepreneur, and educator. Rod’s considerable operational experience is combined with the management experience garnered as one of the founders of Terrace based regional airline, Hawkair. In addition to a pilot’s licence, Rod holds an M1 and M2 Aircraft Engineers licence as well as a MBA from the University of Northern British Columbia. Throughout his career, Rod has held a number of Transport Canada approved positions such as Director of Maintenance, Quality Assurance Manager, Safety Manager, and Accountable Executive.
Within the BC aviation community, Rod has been a member of the BC Aviation Council (BCAC) Operator’s Committee and was an active member of the YVR Airport Consultative Committee (ACC) while at Hawkair. Rod recently stepped down as the General Manager/CEO for Hawkair, a position he held for 9 years, in order to join the School of Business at the University of the Fraser Valley (UFV) in Abbotsford. Rod shares his unique knowledge of aviation and business while teaching both general business courses and aviation focused business courses in UFV’s Bachelor of Business in Aviation program.