At a ceremony to unveil the Canadore College aviation program's newest training tool, a Boeing 727-200 graciously donated by KF Aerospace, Martin Galvin, Dean of Aviation Technology was beaming from ear-to-ear, clearly pleased with his program's good fortune.
"The aircraft is so unique in that it's a heavy aircraft. We've been in the aviation maintenance business since 1973, and we've had helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft, but we've never had a heavy aircraft, a commercial airliner, or a cargo aircraft like this," said Galvin.
Galvin noted that there were unique systems to the aircraft that the students would be able to perform maintenance procedures on, that would not have been available to them previously.
The professors and staff in the aviation department are all already equipped to teach on a plane of this size, so training will begin immediately for students.
Due to the size of the aircraft, it does not fit in the hangar at the aviation campus, but the school is looking at it in a positive way, as a form of advertising, saying potential students will see the plane outside as they approach.
Canadore College President George Burton was equally grateful for the donation, saying, "We're committed to growing the aviation campus. We have some other initiatives that we will announce throughout the year.
"We do see this sector growing, as well as the need for aviation professionals. There is a large retirement bubble coming, due to mandatory retirement ages in the industry," said Burton.
Burton observed that aviation department is attracting students from around the world, but pointed out that a real opportunity for growth could be found in increasing enrollment of female students and having women join the industry that is known for high-paying jobs.
From the looks on the faces of the aviation students on hand Friday, many are eager to get to work on their new training tool.
