Lieutenant-Colonel Melissa Snook
LCol Melissa Snook is originally from Conception Bay South Newfoundland, and enrolled in the Canadian Armed Forces in 2001 to commence her studies at the Royal Military College of Canada. After a preparatory year in St. Jean Quebec, she spent the next four years in Kingston where she graduated with a double major in Physics and Space Science in 2006.
After being trained as an Aerospace Engineer, LCol Snook was posted to 408 Tactical Helicopter Squadron in Edmonton. While at 408 Squadron, she had the opportunity to deploy to Afghanistan as a maintenance officer for the CH146 Griffon and CH147D Chinook helicopters.
LCol Snook has also served at the Tactical Aviation Headquarters in Kingston and was an aide for the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) in Ottawa for two years. In this job, she planned strategic engagements for the CDS and travelled with his team internationally. Some of the places she visited include Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Brunei, Singapore, and the Canadian Arctic.
Following her time with the Chief of the Defence Staff, LCol Snook wanted a new challenge and therefore applied to work in the Canadian Special Operations Forces Command. She was selected to be the Squadron Aircraft Maintenance and Engineering Officer at 427 Special Operations Aviation Squadron in Petawawa in 2015. She was subsequently posted to Toronto for a year to attend the Joint Command and Staff
College, where she earned a Masters Degree in Defence Studies, and completed an internship at Air Canada. Her other academic accomplishments include a Masters in
Business Administration from the University of the Arts in London, UK.
After Toronto, LCol Snook was selected to return to 427 Squadron as the Deputy Commanding Officer. During this posting, she deployed overseas on Operation Impact as a detachment commander for six months, leading airmen and airwomen in operations. In September 2020, LCol Snook moved into a new role in our Special Forces Headquarters where she oversaw aviation projects for the Command such as the new MAISR capability, Uncrewed Aviation Systems, and SOF integration with RCAF platforms. While in the job, she transferred into the new Air Operations Officer (AOO) occupation and became part of the AOO council standing up the RCAF initiative. LCol Snook is married to Doug, and has an extremely cute dog named Coco. For hobbies, she enjoys snowboarding, stand-up-paddle boarding, running, and travelling.