Captain Jan Becker AM Ph.D

Captain Jan Becker AM Ph.D's Biography

Captain Jan Becker - co-founding Becker Helicopters Pilot Academy CEO, helicopter pilot, midwife, international leader,-founder of Midwife Vision Global in Tanzania and Griffith University Masters graduate.

As the CEO of the largest helicopter pilot training Academy in the Southern Hemisphere, Jan coordinates emergency responses in floods, bushfires, and other emergencies as well as overseeing the training of the next generation of pilots. That's alongside the joy of helping to bring a new life into the world, in the midwifery training clinic in she founded in Tanzania.

Jan received an Order of Australia Medal for her service to aviation and community health, through neonatal organizations in 2020 and she’s also the 2021 Outstanding Alumnus Award winner for Griffith Sciences.

As CEO of Becker Helicopter Pilot Academy, she’s helped the company to turn over $20 million a year and employ a staff of 70. Jan was even appointed Chair of the Helicopter Association International, in the US.

Jan leads the strategic planning, regulatory compliance, finance, marketing and administration. Jan’s unique upbringing in Singapore helped shape the international focus in her career. With a Bachelor of Science (Nursing), Jan is currently a certified Midwife, General and Psychiatric Nurse. She has worked in the remote locations, including the Outback of Australia, the Ilala District in Tanzania and the Highlands of Papua New Guinea.

Her nursing career has included roles in Neonatal Intensive Care and Accident and Emergency departments, in Australia, NZ, PNG and Tanzania (Africa). Jan comes from an Aviation family which has also influenced her career.

Jan is a Commercial Helicopter Pilot who developed and wrote the courseware Human Factors for Helicopter pilots and taught Human Factors for CPLH students for a number of years in the Civil Helicopter Ground School. During her role as CEO of Becker Helicopters, the company has achieved many awards, Australian Institute of Management, Excellence in Business Awards, Individual Management, QLD State Premiers Export Award Innovation Award winner, and National Telstra Medium Business Awards 2013.

Jan attended Harvard, Boston USA for a week’s residency school on Leadership and Innovation. Jan also holds a Masters in Aviation Management which included a project focused on Night Vision Goggles.

Jan and her daughter co-founded an International NGO in Tanzania building a training clinic teaching doctors, midwife and nurses how to treat the conditions in pregnancy and labour that cause newborn and maternal death.

As CEO of Becker Helicopters Pilot Academy – managing multiple projects and coordinating multicounty teams – it allowed Jan to coordinate philanthropic work by building a training clinic in Tanzania. The refurbished labour ward, and operating theatre – operational a 24/7 maternity operating theatre fitting it out with the equipment, running water and electricity.

Deliveries are 50-100 per day so its chaotic but unimaginably rewarding, frustrating, heart-breaking and life changing.

For over ten years Jan and her daughter have worked /volunteered in Tanzania going 3-4 times a year. During that time out of frustration and continued failures of the neonatal resuscitation training – training failing to transfer into clinical practice – and the babies still being placed on the ‘dead baby bench’ – that we developed a new Hands-on training (HOT) – Champion program. The concept of the midwives being the babies ‘Champion’ for one minute after birth with unequivocal focus on resuscitation. Training was carried out during actual live emergencies creating opportunities to learn vicariously, build confidence and belief. The result was a letter of congratulations from the Tanzanian Ministry of Health for the biggest reduction in maternal deaths and less newborns admitted to the neonatal unit.

Whether speaking about business success, flying or humanitarian work, and or women’s health, Jan has a vast grab bag of motivational and inspirational tales to draw from. She takes audiences on a memorable journey, weaving humour and insight to connect on a deep and impactful level.

Jan loves sharing real-life lessons about the courage and discipline required to create a successful company, overcome life and work challenges, and the rewards that come from being the change you want to see in the world.

Contact Helene Greenham directly to enquire about Captain Jan Becker to speak at your next event – helene@platinumspeakers.com.au