Montreal, June 14, 2013 – Aéro Montréal is pleased to announce the appointment of Maria Della Posta, Senior Vice President, Sales and Marketing at Pratt & Whitney Canada (P&WC), as Chairman of its Board of Directors. Ms. Della Posta succeeds Gilles Labbé, President and Chief Executive Officer of Héroux-Devtek, who had held the position since 2010.

Ms. Della Posta began her career at P&WC in 1985, holding various procurement, sales financing and credit, customer support, helicopters marketing program and supply chain positions. In 2000, she was named Director, Customer Support. In 2001, she was promoted to Vice President, Customer Support. She was appointed Vice President, Customer Service, in 2008.

“It’s a great honour to have, for the first time, a woman at the helm of the Board,” said Suzanne Benoît, President of Aéro Montréal. “Ms. Della Posta has been a member of P&WC’s President’s Office since 2012 and Senior Vice President, Sales and Marketing, since 2010. One of her duties is to oversee the implementation of the company’s growth strategy. Ms. Della Posta is an inspiring role model for Quebec’s next generation, particularly young women who aspire to play a major role in Quebec's aerospace industry.”

“I’m very proud to accept this new challenge. With the support of Aéro Montréal’s Board of Directors and management team, together we will continue to implement our strategy for advancing and expanding our industry in Quebec and abroad,” said Ms. Della Posta.

Ms. Della Posta is also a member of the Aerospace Industries Association of Canada (AIAC) and the General Aviation Manufacturers Association (GAMA). Since 2011, she has been a member of the McGill MBA Mentoring Advisory Board. In 2001, Ms. Della Posta was inducted into New York City’s YMCA Academy of Women Achievers for her professional excellence and the strong leadership she has demonstrated throughout her career.

She earned a Bachelor of Commerce degree from McGill University in 1985 and an MBA from McGill University in 1991.

“I would also like to thank Gilles Labbé for his vital leadership and involvement in implementing catalyst and structuring projects for Quebec's aerospace cluster in recent years,” added Ms. Benoît. “We are delighted that he is serving as one of our board members again this year.”

2013 Aéro Montréal Board of Directors :

• Bell Helicopter Textron Canada, Barry Kohler, President
• Bombardier Aerospace, Hélène V. Gagnon, Vice President, Public Affairs, Communications and Corporate Social Responsibility
• CAE Inc., President & CEO
• Pratt et Whitney Canada, Maria Della Posta, Senior Vice President, Sales & Marketing
• Aérolia - EADS Canada, Pierre Delestrade, President
• Esterline CMC Électronique, Patrick Champagne, Vice President, Cockpits and Systems Integration
• GE Aviation Bromont, Philippe Simonato, Plant Director
• SAFRAN Canada, Hélène Séguinotte, Country Delegate - SAFRAN
• Héroux-Devtek, President & CEO
• L-3 Communications MAS, Jacques Comtois, President
• MDA Satellite Systems, Marc Donato, Vice President & General Manager
• Rolls-Royce Canada, Denis Giangi, Vice President, Finance and Administration
• Sonaca Montréal, pending the appointment of the new CEO
• Thales Canada, Aerospace, Michel Grenier, Vice President & Managing Director
• Alta Précision, Guillermo Alonso, President
• Avianor, Sylvain Bédard, President & General Manager
• AV&R Robotique, Éric Beauregard, President
• Groupe Meloche, Hugue Meloche, President & CEO
• IAMAW-Québec,  Gérald Tremblay, Grand Lodge Representative
• CAMAQ, Serge Tremblay, Executive Director
• CRIAQ, Clément Fortin, President & CEO
• ÉMAM, Josée Péloquin, Director
• ÉNA, Serge Brasset, General Manager
• NRCC, Jerzy Komorowski, General Manager, Aerospace Portfolio
• Polytechnique Montréal, Christophe Guy, CEO

Observateurs

• Industrie Canada, Diane L’Écuyer, Interim Regional Executive Director
• Ministère des Finances et de l’Économie, Suzanne Lévesque, Asssistant Deputy Minister