From selling firewood in rural Newfoundland to building a hybrid-electric aircraft

From selling firewood in rural Newfoundland to building a hybrid-electric aircraft

Dave Green, founder of D3 startup Green Aerospace, has always been an entrepreneur at heart.

He grew up in Greens Harbour, a town of 500 people in rural Newfoundland. As soon as he was old enough to use a saw, he started selling firewood at nine years old. That same drive followed him to McGill, where he studied mechanical engineering and led the Formula Electric FSAE team as Technical Director. It was there he realized he needed to have a venture of his own.

“Not a lot of people know this, but the world might run out of regional airplanes.”

By 2030, 44% of the global regional aircraft fleet will be approaching retirement. These are the planes that handle short connector flights, roughly one in three flights in the United States.

Right now, there is effectively one major manufacturer still producing this class of aircraft, and they cannot keep up with demand. That’s where Green Aerospace comes in.

They are developing a 70-seat hybrid electric regional jet for routes like Montreal–New York or Chicago–Denver. From the outside, the aircraft looks familiar. Under the hood, it’s powered by electric motors and batteries, supported by a turbo generator.

Lower operating costs, groundbreaking hybrid-electric propulsion, and a market that urgently needs new planes. It’s ambitious, it’s long term, and right now, it’s being built by a team of two.

“We are two people building an airplane. The hardest part is making sure every minute we work is spent on the most impactful thing.”

Dave joined District 3’s Tech Validation program in Fall 2025 to test whether airlines actually wanted what Green Aerospace is building and whether the business model made sense. Now he’s continuing in our Launch & Grow program, getting support on capital strategy, access to Concordia lab space for prototyping, and a community of founders who grow together.

“Through D3, our coaches helped us get into the right rooms and validate that customers are interested in our solution. We are kind of an atypical startup, so it’s been really nice to learn from our peers at D3. I am still close with people from my Validation cohort. Those are connections for life.”

As a proud Canadian, Dave’s long-term vision is to help reaffirm Canada’s global position in the aerospace industry, employ thousands of people across the country and build the next generation of regional aircraft right here at home.

His advice for future founders:

“Just start. Your first one’s always going to be wrong. Your second one might even be worse. But the most progress comes from just starting.”