Ground broken on B.C. fixed-wing search and rescue facility

COMOX, B.C. – Airbus has broken ground on a new fixed-wing search and rescue (FWSAR) training centre in Comox, B.C. for C295 aircraft crews and technicians at CFB Comox.

The centre will house training facilities, a flight simulator, procedure trainers and maintenance training devices. CFB Comox will serve as the main training centre for C295 crews, with Airbus operating the facility over the 20-year life of the contract, supported by Montreal-based CAE. The contract was awarded last year.

CAE will lead the design and build of the facility, under a contract managed by AirPro, a joint venture between Airbus and PAL Aerospace from St John’s, N.L.

“This state-of-the-art training facility in Comox will serve as the centre of excellence for training the men and women of the RCAF and prepare them to carry out critical and challenging search and rescue missions,” said CAE Canada vice-president and general manager Joe Armstrong in a statement.

“Just more than a year into the programme we are on schedule and making excellent progress towards the entry into service of the C295, backed by a robust support infrastructure that will serve Canada well for the decades to come,” said Airbus Defence and Space in Canada head Simon Jacques.