Police Arrest Air Canada Pilot Accused of Flying 900 Flights Without Proper Licence

Peel Regional Police say they have arrested a former Air Canada pilot accused of flying domestic and international passenger flights since 2009 without the required licence.

Geoffrey Wall, 59, of Barrie, Ont., was arrested on June 1 following a fraud and forgery investigation by the police service, known as Project Icarus, Peel police announced at a June 9 press conference.

The investigation began in January after Transport Canada initiated a regulatory review into the licensing requirements and credentials for Wall, who had a 27-year career with Air Canada, Peel Regional Police Deputy Chief Nick Milinovich said.

After starting his career as a commercial pilot in 1998, Wall was promoted to captain in 2009 and assumed command of passenger flights.

As a captain, Wall was required to have an airline transport pilot’s licence to fly passengers, but Peel police allege Wall misrepresented himself and his credentials to Air Canada and regulatory officials using fraudulent licensing documents.

“This is very similar to a doctor that is licensed to practice family medicine, but is doing brain surgery in their office,” Milinovich said.

“Regulations, licensing requirements—they exist for a reason. They exist to keep people safe,” he added.

Wall captained more than 900 domestic and international flights and flew tens of thousands of passengers without the required licence from 2009 until he retired in 2025, prior to the regulatory review and police investigation, Milinovich noted. The deputy chief further noted that the false credentials enabled Wall to earn millions of dollars more in salary.

Bypassing credentials “introduces risks and impacts” to the community and “casts an unfair shadow on an entire profession,” Milinovich added.

Wall was charged with fraud over $5,000, two counts of uttering forged documents, three counts of possession of counterfeit mark, and public mischief.

Wall also held several positions with the Air Canada Pilots Association during his career, including chair of its Master Executive Council, the association’s governing body, police said.

Peel Regional Police Detective Sergeant Chad Michell said at the press conference that the “catalyst event” that led to the investigation occurred in March 2025 at Toronto Pearson International Airport during a routine operational evaluation of Wall’s credentials and performance.

“Anomalies were detected within the pilot licence documentation he provided,” Michell said.

The police investigation included a residential search warrant executed in Barrie in February that was followed by other judicial authorizations, witness interviews, and expert input, including a forensic analysis conducted by the RCMP National Anti-Counterfeiting Bureau in Ottawa.

Brampton Mayor Patrick Brown, who also spoke at the press conference, said the investigation “sends a clear message—no one is above the law.”

“Fraud undermines trust, damages institutions, and can have serious impacts on people’s lives and livelihoods,” Brown said. “That’s why investigations like this matter.”

Air Canada

Air Canada issued a statement on June 8, saying safety “was not compromised” by the incident as all Air Canada pilots undergo mandatory recurrent training every six months to “validate their flying competency.” It also said pilots undergo a flight check with a certified Transport Canada check-pilot every 12 months.

“However, appropriate licencing is an essential layer of the airline industry’s multi-layered approach to safety, so Air Canada takes this matter with utmost seriousness,” the airline said.

Air Canada said Wall was “a fully trained pilot” throughout his employment with the airline, and held a valid commercial pilot’s licence. In addition, Wall “successfully met or exceeded” the required recurrent training and demonstrated a “high level of competency to safely operate large aircraft,” the airline said.

Meanwhile, it noted that Wall lacked the airline transport pilot licence that is required for the captain position.

“Immediately upon Air Canada’s discovery of this, the individual was removed from active duty, and the company voluntarily reported the matter to Transport Canada,” Air Canada said, adding that Wall is no longer employed by Air Canada.

The airline also said it completed an audit of its pilots and found no other instances of non-compliance. It added that it has “reinforced” its administrative practices when physically verifying licences, including verifying the original documents issued by Transport Canada.