Founded on Saint Patrick's Day in 1947, CAE will conduct a year of celebrations with its 8,000 employees worldwide to commemorate its 70th anniversary.
"Over the last decades, we've built on our diversity, our passion for excellence and the talent of people all over the world to create a great company," Marc Parent, CAE's president and CEO said. "We come from different countries, different cultures and we have different expertise, but we are united as one team - one team focused on one vision: to be the worldwide training partner of choice to enhance safety, efficiency and readiness. This year, we are going to celebrate CAE's history and bright future."
Employees in each of CAE's 160 sites around the world will participate in celebrations which will continue throughout the year; they include activities, historical videos, a global contest encouraging employees to tell their CAE story, a global family day, and more.
Formerly known as Canadian Aviation Electronics, CAE was founded seventy years ago on the determination and vision of ex-Royal Canadian Air Force officer, Ken Patrick, who assembled what he called "a war-trained team that was extremely innovative and very technology-intensive."
"Today, innovation is still at the heart of our company," Marc Parent said. "Since our first contract to build a flight simulator for the Royal Canadian Air Force in 1952, we transformed ourselves over the years from a simulator manufacturer to a global training company focused on making air travel safer, allowing defence forces to return home safely, and helping medical personnel provide better care. That's something we are really proud of."
Watch 'CAE - The Beginnings' on YouTube: