25 May 2020: CAE USA will provide support in the designing, developing and manufacturing of three C-130J full-mission simulators for the United States Air Force Special Operations Command (AFSOC) based on a subcontract awarded by Lockheed Martin. These three MC/EC-130J simulators will be delivered to various air bases in 2023.
Out of the three, one of the C-130J simulators will be reconfigurable between the MC-130J and EC-130J, a variant used for information operations by AFSOC while the other two will be specifically used for the MC-130J variant, multi-mission transport and special operations tanker operated by AFSOC. This full-mission simulator will be full-motion and accurately simulate the aircraft and its various missions by recreate the sounds, motion, virtual environment and all other aircraft systems required to provide a high-fidelity, realistic flight training environment.
Stressing the importance of a two decade old partnership between Lockheed Martin and CAE, Ray Duquette, President and General Manager, CAE USA said, “The design and development of training systems for the C-130J Super Hercules and its variants has proven to be a great partnership. The high-fidelity simulation capabilities of these MC-130J and EC-130J full-mission simulators will enable Air Force Special Operations Command to continue increasing the use of synthetic training across the overall training curriculum, which contributes to the safe and cost-effective readiness of the aircrews.”
Lockheed Martin and CAE have designed and developed a range of C-130J training systems for all branches of the United States Air Force, including Air Mobility Command, Air Combat Command, Air National Guard and AFSOC.