THIS IS AS REAL AS IT GETS Decommissioned air ambulance finds new home with Mohawk Aviation programs
T
he bright orange twin-engine helicopter logged more than 20,000 hours of flying time in its 30-year career and will now put in countless more hours as a “learning lab” for Mohawk’s rapidly growing Aviation Technician program. The donation of the Sikorsky S-76A aircraft by air ambulance provider Ornge was officially marked at a ceremony at the John C. Munro Hamilton International Airport in August. The helicopter flew more than 6,000 patients in 12 years in the Ornge fleet. “Our behind-the-scenes team of mechanics and maintenance personnel are our unsung heroes. They don’t get much recognition but they are an absolutely essential part of our organization,” said Rob Giguere, Chief Operating Officer and Deputy CEO of Ornge.
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Mohawk students will train on the aircraft and the hope is that some of them will come to work at Ornge, he said. “One of the strengths of Mohawk is the access we give our students to equipment and technology that is as close to the real thing as possible. It doesn’t get much more real than this,” said Paul Armstrong, Mohawk’s Vice-President, Academic. “We give an experience few colleges can match and this is the ultimate lab. The faculty and staff at Mohawk are dedicated to making the aviation streams a huge success. Hamilton is an important link in Canada’s transportation network.” Mohawk’s cluster of aviation programs includes Aircraft Maintenance, Aircraft Structures and a new Avionics stream that will begin in September 2018.