Dave O’Connor is a respected manufacturing executive, having worked in the Aerospace sector for over 30 years. In 2019 he retired as the Division Manager for Space, Rockets, and Helicopter Wire Strike Protection Systems at Magellan Aerospace Corporation in Winnipeg. During his time with the company, he also served as the Directors of Operations, Engineering, Marketing, Finance, and Quality.

Upon his retirement he was hired by the University of Manitoba to develop and teach a course in advanced manufacturing, focusing on artificial intelligence. He has also taught a course in Aerospace Life Cycle Management.

Dave holds a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering and a Master of Business Administration, both from the University of Manitoba. In addition, he has served on the boards of the Royal Aviation Museum of Western Canada, Winnipeg, the Green Aviation Research and Development Network (GARDN), Montreal, the Composites Innovation Center (CIC), Winnipeg, Winnipeg, the Assiniboine Park Hockey Association, Winnipeg.