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| An old RAAF C-130H, one of which will become the new simulator |
Sydney, Australia, April 6, 2016 - (NYSE: CAE; TSX: CAE) - CAE today announced that CAE Australia Pty Ltd was awarded a contract from Australia's Department of Defence Capability and Acquisition Sustainment Group (CASG) to develop a C-130J Fuselage Cargo Compartment Trainer for the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF).
The contract was signed during CAE's fiscal 2016 fourth quarter and included in the total value of contracts CAE announced today.
The C-130J Fuselage Trainer (FuT), which will be delivered to RAAF Base Richmond in Spring 2018, will be used to provide high-fidelity training to loadmasters. The RAAF's C-130J loadmaster aircrews have responsibility for the loading and unloading of cargo on the C-130J Hercules aircraft as well as ensuring proper aircraft weight and balance.
"The new fuselage trainer marks the first time that our C-130J loadmaster workforce will have a dedicated training device that accurately reflects the configuration of this aircraft," said Air Commodore Richard Lennon, Commander of the RAAF's Air Mobility Group. "The C-130J fuselage trainer will complement our C-130J full-mission flight simulator and other training devices, providing our C-130J workforce with immersive, full-crew mission training in a virtual environment."
CAE will serve as the prime contractor responsible for the overall design, development and delivery of the C-130J FuT. CAE will be leveraging the design and simulation software already developed for the CC-130J FuT delivered to the Royal Canadian Air Force. CAE will also oversee a team of subcontractors that includes Lockheed Martin and Airbus Defence & Space, which will have responsibility for hardware modifications to an ex-RAAF C-130H fuselage that will provide the physical platform for the new C-130J Fuselage Cargo Compartment Trainer.
"We are pleased to continue our longstanding relationship with the Royal Australian Air Force's Air Mobility Group as their C-130J training partner," said Peter Redman, Vice President and General Manager, CAE Asia/Pacific, Defence & Security. "The RAAF is one of the world's leading air forces in the application of simulation-based training to cost-effectively support the preparation and readiness of their aircrews, which ultimately contributes to mission success."
CAE provided the RAAF C-130J Full-Flight and Mission Simulator (FFMS) used at RAAF Base Richmond, as well as CAE Simfinity desktop trainers and instructor tools used as part of the RAAF's C-130J groundschool. CAE also provides a range of training services on-site at RAAF Richmond to support the RAAF's C-130J training program, including simulator and live flying instruction and maintenance services.