News
Cascade Aerospace, CAE complete special project
May 2, 2012, Abbotsford, B.C. - A highly unusual sight occurred at the Abbotsford International Airport today when a CC-130J Fuselage Trainer shrouded in white plastic departed Cascade Aerospace Inc.’s headquarters facility aboard a transport truck.
May 2, 2012 By Carey Fredericks
With the truck, trailer and Trainer totaling 190 feet in length, it is the longest over-sized truck shipment ever to be transported in B.C. The massive training device is destined for Canadian Forces Base Trenton, ON, where it will be installed at the new Air Mobility Training Centre (AMTC) and used by the Royal Canadian Air Force to train loadmasters on Canada’s newest tactical airlifter, the Lockheed Martin CC-130J Super Hercules.
Loadmasters are typically one of three aircrew members and oversee the loading, unloading and safe transport of people and equipment on board the CC-130J aircraft.
Montreal-based CAE and Abbotsford-based Cascade worked together to produce the CC-130J Fuselage Trainer, with Cascade designing and building the training device and CAE designing the simulation-based training modules.
“Canada has truly raised the bar in terms of CC-130J training and there is nothing quite like this fuselage trainer anywhere else in the world,” says David Schellenberg, Cascade CEO. “We are confident C-130J operators around the globe will have interest because of its amazing fidelity and the ability to conduct cost-effective training. Its resemblance to a brand new C-130J is remarkable.”
The CC-130J Fuselage Trainer is a far cry from what it started out as. Cascade amalgamated five different aircraft fuselage pieces from various C-130 aircraft, and outfitted it to replicate a brand new CC-130J. (Please refer to the attached backgrounder for additional information.)
Under a program called the Operational Training Systems Provider (OTSP), CAE is the prime contractor for the Government of Canada to provide training systems and services for Canada’s new fleets of CC-130J Super Hercules aircraft and CH-147 Chinook medium-to-heavy helicopters. As part of the OTSP program, CAE leads a Canadian team of companies across Canada, including Cascade, in delivering world-class training solutions.
