The Government of Canada has officially awarded SkyAlyne a 25-year contact for the Future Aircrew Training (FAcT) program in the country, including 15 Wing Moose Jaw. 

SkyAlyne is a partnership between CAE, who runs the NATO Flying Training in Canada Program (NFTC) at 15 Wing, and KF Aerospace. The NFTC program has been in place since 2000 and CAE has been the primary contractor since October of 2015.   

Director of Programs, Defense and Security for CAE Abir Kazan, said Moose Jaw and 15 Wing will play an integral role in this new partnership. 

“15 Wing Moose jaw will be central to pilot throughput delivery and CAE will be at the centre of what’s happening in Moose Jaw now and in the future essentially,” Kazan said. 

CAE will bring its expertise when it comes to simulation, flight training and training delivery. Meanwhile, KF Aerospace brings experience in maintenance, repair and overhaul, maintenance training and airworthiness. CAE and KF Aerospace are the incumbent contractors for RCAF training. SkyAlyne will now put them under one umbrella to provide live flying, simulation, ground school training and in-service support functions. 

Kazan said, when it comes to 15 Wing, CAE will continue to operate the NFTC program as the training programs ramp up under SkyAlyne. 

“Definitely, the NFTC program will continue to operate for many years and then in parallel FAcT will ramp up at some point in time. We need to ensure that the transition in and transition out happens seamlessly and CAE’s core to all of that. So, there is definitely an increased workload during that period,” Kazan said. 

Kazan added there is still a lot of setting up, acquisition and delivery of assets and new infrastructure that needs to be built for FaCT. 

Moose Jaw Mayor Clive Tolley released the following written statement when the contract was announced: 

“15 Wing is a key facet of Moose Jaw’s identity, and we’re excited to know that training operations at our military base have been secured for another 25 years. On behalf of City Council, we congratulate SkyAlyne on being awarded this contract, and we thank the Government of Canada for this major investment that will be #NotoriouslyImpactful to our economy and perhaps open other economic opportunities.” 

Moose Jaw – Lake Centre – Lanigan MP Fraser Tolmie also released the following statement about the new contract: 

“Moose Jaw is extremely proud of 15 Wing and the continued positive impact they have on training the next generation of pilots for the RCAF and our allies. 15 Wing is an integral part of our community. This is a welcome announcement that will not only improve Canada's military capacity as a whole but ensure that Moose Jaw and 15 Wing will continue to serve as a critical part of our RCAF. I was happy to monitor this file due to the importance it has for our riding, meeting with stakeholders to ensure that we reached the finish line on this project. This is great news for the City of Moose Jaw and will ensure we continue to be a proud military city for many years to come. Although this contract has been completed, there is more work needed to build up our military capacity, and we will continue to advocate for 15 Wing pilot training, Canada's Snowbirds air demonstration team, and all branches of the Canada Armed Forces.” 

Along with 15 Wing, SkyAlyne training services will also be provided at Southport (Portage la Prairie) and 17 Wing Winnipeg. 

The contract is for 25 years and worth $11.2 billion.