Johnny May (born 1945) is a Canadian

Inuk Inuit (singular: Inuk) are a group of culturally and historically similar Indigenous peoples of the Americas, Indigenous peoples traditionally inhabiting the Arctic and Subarctic regions of North America and Russia, including Greenland, Labr ...

bush pilot Bush flying refers to aircraft operations carried out in the bush. Bush flying involves operations in rough terrain where there are often no prepared landing strips or runways, frequently necessitating that bush planes be equipped with abnormal ...

living in

Kuujjuaq Kuujjuaq (; or ), formerly known as (ᓲᐃᕙᐅᖃᔾ) and by #Names, other names, is a former Hudson's Bay Company outpost at the mouth of the Koksoak River on Ungava Bay that has become the largest northern village (Quebec), northern vil ...

, known as being the first Inuk pilot in eastern Canada. He is credited with saving the lives of many Inuit in search-and-rescue missions and operating

medevac Medical evacuation, often shortened to medevac or medivac, is the timely and efficient movement and en route care provided by medical personnel to patients requiring evacuation or transport using medically equipped air ambulances, helicopters an ...

airplane services to transport sick Inuit to health centres. May is the older brother of Canadian

Governor General Governor-general (plural governors-general), or governor general (plural governors general), is the title of an official, most prominently associated with the British Empire. In the context of the governors-general and former British colonies, ...

Mary Simon Mary Jeannie May Simon (born August 21, 1947) is a Canadian civil servant, diplomat, and former broadcaster who has been serving as the 30th governor general of Canada since July 26, 2021. She is Inuit, Inuk on her mother's side, making her th ...

Family

His father was a non-Inuit manager of the

Hudson's Bay Company The Hudson's Bay Company (HBC), originally the Governor and Company of Adventurers of England Trading Into Hudson’s Bay, is a Canadian holding company of department stores, and the oldest corporation in North America. It was the owner of the ...

trading post A trading post, trading station, or trading house, also known as a factory in European and colonial contexts, is an establishment or settlement where goods and services could be traded. Typically a trading post allows people from one geogr ...

in Fort Severight (now

Kangiqsualujjuaq Kangiqsualujjuaq ( ; ; ) is an Inuit village located at the mouth of the George River on the east coast of Ungava Bay in Nunavik, Quebec, Canada. Its population was 956 as of the Canada 2021 Census, 2021 census. The settlement's original na ...

), while his mother was a local Inuk. Among his seven siblings, his sister

is a former president of

Makivik Corporation Makivvik (, ; ) (''formerly Makivik Corporation'') is the legal representative of Quebec's Inuit, established in 1978 under the terms of the James Bay and Northern Quebec Agreement, the agreement that established the institutions of Nunavik. As s ...

, former

diplomat A diplomat (from ; romanization, romanized ''diploma'') is a person appointed by a state (polity), state, International organization, intergovernmental, or Non-governmental organization, nongovernmental institution to conduct diplomacy with one ...

and the current

Governor General of Canada The governor general of Canada () is the federal representative of the . The monarch of Canada is also sovereign and head of state of 14 other Commonwealth realms and resides in the United Kingdom. The monarch, on the Advice (constitutional la ...

Career

May obtained his pilot's licence in 1962 after training in

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...

. Through his company, Johnny May's Air Charters, he flew search-and-rescue missions in the

Arctic tundra In physical geography, a tundra () is a type of biome where tree growth is hindered by frigid temperatures and short growing seasons. There are three regions and associated types of tundra: Arctic, Alpine, and Antarctic. Tundra vegetation is ...

, as well as

s between Inuit villages and from

Nunavik Nunavik (; ; ) is an area in Canada which comprises the northern third of the province of Quebec, part of the Nord-du-Québec region and nearly coterminous with Kativik. Covering a land area of north of the 55th parallel, it is the homelan ...

to hospitals in southern Canada. He is known for his annual Christmas candy drop, which occurred annually from 1965 until 2019. On

Christmas Christmas is an annual festival commemorating Nativity of Jesus, the birth of Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a Religion, religious and Culture, cultural celebration among billions of people Observance of Christmas by coun ...

day, he would take his airplane and shower the village of

with candy and gifts.

Legacy

He was inducted into the Québec Air and Space Hall of Fame in 2010. A movie about his life and career entitled ''The Wings of Johnny May'' was released in 2014 in English, French and

Inuktitut Inuktitut ( ; , Inuktitut syllabics, syllabics ), also known as Eastern Canadian Inuktitut, is one of the principal Inuit languages of Canada. It is spoken in all areas north of the North American tree line, including parts of the provinces of ...

. A children's book about his annual candy drop titled The Kuujjuaq Christmas Candy Drop by Linda Brand was released in 2015. In 2017 a short animated film was produced by the CBC called ''The Great Northern Candy Drop''. In 2023, a children's picture book, ''The Little Nunavik Airplane / Painngupaali arvitartuq / Le p’tit avion du Nunavik'' was published in Quebec. The book tells the story of ''Pengo Pally'', Johnny May's little beaver aircraft, which takes readers on a tour from Kangiqsualujjuaq to Kuujjuaraapik, and welcomes the animals of the region on board. Through a small airplane's perspective, the story reveals the region's unique beauty and cultural richness. Inspired by Johnny May, the first Inuk pilot in Canada, the book celebrates his "Christmas Candy Drop" tradition and contributions to Nunavik. The book was created with inuit collaborators and translated in Inuktitut.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:May, Johnny 1945 births Living people 20th-century Inuit people 21st-century Inuit people Inuit from Quebec Canadian aviators