Chapter 7: Operational Training–Infrastructure Strategy

The RCAF's existing training infrastructure largely consists of an eclectic mix of buildings, many of which are ageing or at the end of their useful service lives, with high upkeep costs even before necessary retrofits are factored in. Given that the RCAF conducts daily operations from multiple locations across Canada, training establishments are often co-located with related aircraft fleets and operational facilities, thus providing some level of shared resources, flexibility and potential efficiencies. In other cases, the dispersed nature of training infrastructure creates a system that is difficult to manage and inherently inefficient. Several hundred classroom spaces are spread among training facilities, and a significant portion of them are often empty, resulting in a substantial and unsustainable waste of both space and resources. Repurposing ageing infrastructure is also very costly; more often than not, the resulting installation is barely adequate for the end user. With the increasingly specific environmental demands for modernized training tools and simulators, as well as new security requirements for networked and advanced training technology, new infrastructure will be needed. Current infrastructure is limiting the RCAF's ability to meet present-day training needs, let alone what the future will demand^{Footnote 6} .

A critical element of the FAFTS is the need for flexible, multiconfigurable space to accommodate the training necessary to meet the ever-evolving demands of advanced systems and weapon-systems technology and capabilities. Trying to find space to retrofit and repurpose to accommodate training technology is time consuming, ineffective and costly. Therefore, the new RCAF training-establishment infrastructure will need to be equipped with robust power supply systems, industrial-grade cooling and ventilation systems, and enhanced security measures suitable for next-generation platforms. Additionally, this infrastructure will be designed for flexibility and multiconfigurability to adapt seamlessly to the evolving training demands of the RCAF.

The Defence Learning Network (DLN) and its coming enhancements also dramatically increase the demand for networked learning spaces within existing infrastructure, and as a key enabler of the TEL's distributed-learning component, this requirement will increase in the future. Current infrastructure hosts very few networked classrooms and has inadequate power and communication-support infrastructure to further expand upon. New campus facilities will include robust network-support infrastructure to ensure adequate communication capabilities for both simulator and e-classroom spaces. The renewed training infrastructure will enable the implementation of TEL environments, creating valuable opportunities for shared classes between training establishments and partnership with other CAF training systems, allies, academia and industry for enhanced learning possibilities.

This OTI strategy decreases costs for DND because the training-asset footprint will be reduced, and vacated buildings can be restored, repurposed or demolished in accordance with master real-property development plans. The total life-cycle operation and maintenance costs for a new consolidated training campus built upon green-building design principles will cost less than numerous old and inefficient buildings spread over DND property. Green, energy-efficient buildings are proven to reduce energy costs by at least 25% and operating costs by 20%^{Footnote 7} . Building a new RCAF Campus infrastructure will also result in greatly reduced operation and maintenance costs which, over a 20-year span, can be nearly half the cost of sustaining the current facilities.

The direct cost savings from modern OTI are substantial, but more importantly, learning effectiveness and the quality of life of our people (through increased training where people live) will also improve. In effect, this OTI strategy moves the RCAF training system from the Cold War–era industrialized model to the modern learning environment that is familiar to, and expected by, today's recruits, thereby creating a new, progressive and stimulating RCAF learning environment as well as infusing a desire to learn and pride to be in the RCAF.