Job Summary
The Director, Maintenance provides strategic leadership and operational oversight for all aircraft maintenance activities across Porter Airlines' fleet. Reporting directly to the Vice President of Maintenance & Engineering, this role is accountable for ensuring line maintenance execution, maintenance operations control (MOC), demand planning, and vendor/MRO maintenance alignment.
The Director ensures all maintenance operations strictly adhere to Transport Canada Civil Aviation (TCCA) regulations, company safety management systems (SMS), and operational reliability targets while driving continuous improvement and efficiency through advanced digital M&E platforms (e.g., AMOS, FlyDocs, Aero Exchange).
Duties & Responsibilities
Operational Leadership & Maintenance Execution
- Oversight of Line Maintenance operations across major hubs and stations (YTZ, YYZ, YOW, Eastern & Western Canada, and International bases)
- Direct leadership over Maintenance Operations Control (MOC) to manage real-time maintenance recovery, AOG events, and fleet availability
- Ensure operational turn-times, aircraft dispatch reliability, and schedule integrity meet corporate performance goals
Regulatory Compliance, Safety & Governance
- Serve as a primary operational contact for Transport Canada regarding ongoing maintenance release and airworthiness operations
- Ensure all maintenance actions conform to approved Maintenance Program specifications, Engineering Orders (EOs), and Airworthiness Directives (ADs)
- Actively participate in Porter's Safety Management System (SMS) by reporting hazards and incidents encountered in daily operations and promoting the Company's Safety Policy
Strategic & Financial Management
- Own operational and capital expense budgets for Line Maintenance and MOC
- Benchmark maintenance execution against industry best practices to streamline labour utilization, hangar capacity, and station support
- Lead and mentor direct reports, including Managers across Line Maintenance, MOC, and Warehouse/Logistics units
Behavioural Competencies
- Concern for Safety: Identifying hazardous or potentially hazardous situations and taking appropriate action to maintain a safe environment for self and others.
- Teamwork: Working collaboratively with others to achieve organizational goals.
- Passenger/Customer Service: Providing service excellence to internal and/or external customers (passengers).
- Initiative: Dealing with situations and issues proactively and persistently, seizing opportunities that arise.
- Results Focus: Focusing efforts on achieving high quality results consistent with the organization’s standards.
- Fostering Communication: Listening and communicating openly, honestly, and respectfully with different audiences, promoting dialogue and building consensus.
- Exemplifying Integrity: Treating others fairly, honestly, and respectfully, furthering the integrity of the organization and its relationships of trust with team members and the broader community.
- Inspiring Others: Energizing and inspiring others to strive for excellence and commit to common goals and purposes, creating a sense of self-efficacy, resilience, and persistence in followers.
- People Leadership: Assuming a leadership role in helping others achieve excellent results.
- Leading Change: Recognizing the need for change, being open to new ideas and methods, and championing transformational change within the organization and beyond.
Qualifications
- Minimum 10–15 years of progressive experience in commercial airline maintenance operations, with at least 5 years in a senior management or director-level capacity
- Valid Transport Canada Aircraft Maintenance Engineer (AME) License or equivalent professional engineering/aviation credential strongly preferred
- Bachelor’s degree in Aviation Maintenance Management, Aviation Maintenance Engineering, Aeronautical Engineering, Business Administration, or equivalent industry experience
- Deep working knowledge of TCCA Part V regulations, MEL/CDL management, line maintenance workflows, and AOG recovery procedures
- Advanced knowledge of airline Maintenance & Engineering (M&E) systems (e.g., AMOS)
- Ability to make sound, risk-based decisions in high-impact, time-critical operational environments
- Ability to develop and maintain strong partnerships with SOCC, Flight Operations, Quality Assurance, and Strategic Procurement
- Proven ability to build, mentor, and structure high-performing technical teams
Location
Toronto (Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport - YTZ)
Company Description
Since 2006, Porter Airlines has been elevating the experience of economy air travel for every passenger, providing genuine hospitality with style, care and charm. Porter’s fleet of Embraer E195-E2 and De Havilland Dash 8-400 aircraft serves North America, including a coast-to-coast domestic Canadian network, the U.S., Mexico, the Caribbean and Central America. Headquartered in Toronto, Porter is an Official 4 Star Airline® in the World Airline Star Rating®. Visit www.flyporter.com or follow @porterairlines on Instagram, Facebook and X.
