Colonel Laura Gagné (left) and Major-General Chris McKenna, Commander of 1 Canadian Air Division (1 CAD) (right), with 4 Wing and CFB Cold Lake Chief Warrant Officer Carlos Oliveira and 1 CAD Chief Warrant Officer Dipen Mistry during the ceremony on July 22. All photos by Cpl Sera Lamming, 4 Wing Imaging.
A new position has been established at 4 Wing and Canadian Forces Base (CFB) Cold Lake, and Colonel Laura Gagné has been selected to fill it.
On July 22, 2026, Gagné was appointed Vice Wing Commander of 4 Wing. Gagné’s appointment came as Colonel Tim Woods was named Commander of 4 Wing and Canadian Forces Base Cold Lake on the same day. The two appointments mark a new chapter in the Wing’s leadership.
Born and raised in Alma, New Brunswick, Gagné joined the Canadian Armed Forces (CAF) as a Direct Entry Officer in September 2000. During her first posting, she served in a variety of logistics positions within Wing Supply and 416 Tactical Fighter Squadron.
Since then, her career has taken her to locations and positions across the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) and the CAF.
In 2006, Gagné was posted to 8 Wing Trenton, initially serving in Wing Supply before transferring to the Aerospace Telecommunications and Engineering Support Squadron. In 2010, she joined the A4 Logistics staff at 1 Canadian Air Division Headquarters in Winnipeg before moving to 17 Wing, where she served as the Officer Commanding Replenishment and later as the Deputy Wing Logistics and Engineering Officer.
Gagné subsequently completed a year of professional military education in Toronto before being posted to the Canadian Forces Joint Operational Support Group, where she served in the J5 section and deployed on several exercises.
In 2018, she joined the Chief of the Air Staff’s Air Support Directorate. The following year, she assumed command of 2 Air Expeditionary Training Squadron at 2 Wing before being internally reassigned to command 2 Mission Support Squadron.
In 2022, Gagné returned to 1 Canadian Air Division as Director A4 Logistics. In 2024, she was posted to 2 Canadian Air Division as Director of Professional Development and Reserve Training Management. Following a year in that role, she was selected to serve as the Visiting Defence Fellow at the University of Manitoba, where she completed the DP4 phase.
Gagné has also served on a number of operational tours, including in Bosnia at NATO Headquarters in Sarajevo, Afghanistan at Kandahar Airfield, Haiti at the United Nations Multinational Force Headquarters in Port-au-Prince, and twice with the Airfield Activation and Surge Team in Mihail Kogalniceanu, Romania.
Outside of her military career, Gagné is an avid runner and enjoys travelling. She is married to Normand Gagné, who also serves in the RCAF. She has three step-sons, and together she and Norm have one son.
Colonel Laura Gagné speaks during the ceremony at 4 Wing and CFB Cold Lake on July 22.