Captain Julian Pyka will retire from the CF with an effective release date of 14 July 2010 after 38 plus years of service as a Military Engr, changed to Airfield Engr, renamed to Construction Engr.

Julian joined the militia in September 1968 as a sapper, 3 Field Regiment, 16 Field Squadron, RCE, in Montreal. In 1971, Julian transferred to the CF and attended Royal Military College until 1975, graduating with a degree in Mechanical Engineering. During his career, Captain Pyka has been posted to Chilliwack BC, Halifax NS, Ismailia, Egypt, Beaverlodge AB, Greenwood NS, Suffield AB, Ottawa ON (PMO Trump, Director General Quartering/Infrastructure, Directorate Construction Engineering Management and Policy, PD Cdn Aerospace Training Program), Moose Jaw SK, and Winnipeg (17 Wing and 1 Cdn Air Div) . Captain Pyka has been a proud member of the Military Engineers supporting in all three environments (air force, army and navy). He has held positions of Requirements Officer, Station CEO, Engineering and Production Officer, Project Manager, and Facility Manager. Presently Captain Pyka is employed at 1 Canadian Air Division as A4 Construction Engineer responsible for developing project approvals for the Air Force Capital Investment Program.

In his retirement, Julian will be relaxing for a couple of weeks before taking on employment with Defence Construction Canada in Winnipeg. Julian hopes to enjoy his short retirement watching his home town Montreal Canadiens win the Stanley Cup… Julian and his wife Jadwiga will be remaining in Winnipeg but as proud grandparents, they plan to retire eventually and move closer to their 3 sons: Robert (Fort Chipewyan, Alberta), Joseph (Ottawa, Ontario) and John (Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan) and their families.

A DWD ceremony will be held on 11 June 2010 at the Canada Inns Polo Park Winnipeg to celebrate his career. Please forward best wishes and/or anecdotes to Brian.Raindahl@forces.gc.ca