Ground Broken on CAE and WestJet Training Centre Near Calgary Airport

Construction has begun on a new pilot and cabin crew training centre near Calgary International Airport, to be operated by CAE with WestJet as its anchor customer. The groundbreaking in September 2026 moves a plan first agreed a year earlier into physical construction, with opening targeted for 2028.

Facility and Funding

Calgary Airports is investing C$40 million (about US$28.7 million) in building the facility. The Alberta government is contributing C$3.8 million for infrastructure and a further C$6.9 million for workforce development. The building totals 135,000 square feet, with the training centre taking just over half of it.

The site sits within YYC AeroNex, the wider aviation hub next to the airport, which separately has a C$172 million Canada Infrastructure Bank investment behind it.

Eight Simulators and 6,000 Trainees

The centre is planned with eight full-flight simulators and room to expand. Training will cover the Boeing 737 MAX, 737NG, 787 Dreamliner and De Havilland Dash 8-400, types in the WestJet group’s fleet. Cabin trainers and digital learning tools are included for cabin crew.

Capacity is put at about 6,000 aviation professionals a year. Mount Royal University will integrate education and research activity into the site, tying the facility to academic programmes rather than leaving it as a pure airline training shop.

Jobs and the Training Agreement

WestJet signed a 15-year training agreement with CAE in September 2025, and the centre is the physical product of that deal. Projected employment is 25 permanent roles, 189 temporary construction roles and 300 contract positions.

CAE’s president and chief executive said the investment would strengthen Canada’s position as a global leader in aviation training, innovation and talent development.

Why It Matters for Careers

A dedicated Calgary centre puts recurrent and initial training next to Calgary Airport and gives the region a larger local base of instructors, simulator technicians and curriculum staff.

It also reflects a broader pattern in which airlines are outsourcing training infrastructure to specialists under long contracts. Boeing’s 2026 Pilot and Technician Outlook projects 122,000 new pilots will be needed in North America over 20 years, and that volume will test the capacity of training providers on the continent.

The type list is also telling. Covering both the 737 MAX and the older 737NG means the centre must support a fleet in transition, with crews qualifying on the newer aircraft while the earlier generation remains in service. Including the Dash 8-400 and the 787 shows the same site is intended to serve regional and long-haul crews, not only narrowbody pilots. The 15-year term of the underlying agreement gives CAE the volume visibility to justify investing in eight devices at a single location.

Calgary Airports, CAE and WestJet have not announced simulator delivery dates beyond the 2028 target for the facility as a whole.