Rotorsim, the joint venture owned equally by CAE and Leonardo, has announced the successful start of training on the NH90 Full Mission Flight Trainer (FMFT) following its relocation from the Rotorsim training center in Sesto Calende, Italy, to a new training facility at Maritime Air Base de Kooy in Den Helder, the Netherlands.
The Netherlands Ministry of Defence (NLMOD) and Netherlands Defence Helicopter Command recently hosted a ceremony to celebrate the opening of the new NH90 training facility in Den Helder. The ceremony was attended by officers from the Royal Netherlands Navy and Royal Netherlands Air Force; officials from the NLMOD; executives from CAE, Leonardo and Rotorsim; and military officials from Italy and Belgium.
“We have trained our NH90 crews for the past eight years in Italy as part of the very successful Joint NH90 Training Program,” said Air Commodore Robert Adang, commander of the Netherlands Defence Helicopter Command. “This new training facility in Den Helder now allows us to train our aircrews in the Netherlands while further advancing our synthetic training capabilities. The value of simulation-based training is critical to preparation and readiness, and the NH90 FMFT plays a key role in complex mission training for our NH90 aircrews.”
As part of the relocation of NH90 training, Rotorsim moved the NLMOD-owned NH90 NATO Frigate Helicopter (NFH) simulator cockpit from the Rotorsim training center to the new facility in Den Helder. In addition, the NLMOD had contracted CAE to design and manufacture a new roll-on/roll-off (RO/RO) full-mission simulator mothership, which includes a six degree-of-freedom (DOF) electric motion system, high-performance vibration platform to replicate vibration cues critical to helicopter pilots, and the latest CAE Medallion-6000 image generator with laser projector display system.
The RO/RO cockpit design enables cockpits representing various helicopter types to be used in the mothership simulator platform, thus giving the NLMOD the flexibility to add simulator cockpits in the future. CAE, under subcontract from Rotorsim, will now provide on-site maintenance and support services on the NH90 full-flight and mission trainer in Den Helder.
“Through our Rotorsim joint venture with Leonardo, we are pleased to have supported the Netherlands NH90 training since 2011, and now assisting the Netherlands in relocating NH90 training to Den Helder,” said Marc-Olivier Sabourin, vice president and general manager, defense and security international, CAE. “The NH90 FMFT is now entering service in Den Helder where CAE had supported the operations of the Joint Lynx helicopter simulator for over 25 years. We look forward to continuing our collaboration with the Netherlands Ministry of Defence to support their training and readiness requirements.”
