Centennial College opens new Downsview Campus Centre for Aerospace and Aviation
Story and aircraft photos by Gord McNulty, CAHS Vice President, with files from Centennial
Ribbon-cutting ceremony at the new Downsview Campus, which took place on April 25.
A remarkable achievement for aviation in Toronto was celebrated on April 25 with the official opening of Centennial College’s state-of-the-art Centre for Aerospace and Aviation at Downsview Campus. CAHS Toronto Chapter Sheldon Benner and I were among a large gathering of College officials and students, corporate executives, and politicians who attended the special occasion and toured the facility.
The $72-million, four-acre campus repurposes the historic de Havilland of Canada building with new construction and selective demolition to create 138,000 square feet of instruction space, including classrooms, labs and workshops, two aircraft hangars, offices, a library and food service under one roof.
In January of this year, 460 students relocated to the new Downsview Campus for studies in Centennial’s long-running Aviation Technician programs and its new Aviation Technology and Airplane Mechanics programs.
In December of 2018, several aircraft were flown in to Downsview from the college’s small hangar at Ashtonbee Campus in Scarborough. They were joined by newer aircraft to replenish and diversify the fleet, including a Cessna Citation II corporate jet, a Cessna Conquest 425 twin-engine turboprop, two Piper Senecas, and no less than four Cessna 172s.
The new campus is three times as large as Ashtonbee and among the largest of its kind in North America. It will allow enrolment to grow to more than 900 students. Of these, 600 will be in aviation maintenance engineering programs, 300 in engineering technology and 100 in airframe assembly.
Focused on innovation and research, the leading-edge campus forms the first phase of Ontario’s Aerospace Hub that will centralize other facilities. It positions Centennial to anchor the Downsview Aerospace and Research (DAIR) consortium to help maintain Canada’s ranking among the world’s top aerospace suppliers.
Centennial President An Buller welcomed guests to the Downsview Campus with aircraft as a fitting backdrop.
Centennial College President Ann Buller, in her remarks, commended the outstanding generosity of well-known aviator, technician, salesman and entrepreneur Bruce MacRitchie. He donated more than one million dollars’ worth of small aircraft, engines, equipment and funds. His gift was the largest donation by a private individual.
Bruce MacRitchie receiving an award for his $1+ million donation to Centennial College. He is in the new glass-walled board room named in his honour. The Board room is located over the centre portion of where TAM's main display area was and where there was no second floor before. (Sheldon Benner photo)
Bruce’s long-established Aviation Technician Scholarship is named in honour of his late brother, longtime CAHS Toronto Chapter stalwart Douglas MacRitchie. It was fitting that the new campus boardroom was named after Bruce during the ceremonies.
Bombardier Aerospace, which in 2012 designated Centennial as its trainer of choice, announced an outsized donation of its own: a beautiful CRJ200 regional jet airliner. This aircraft entered passenger service with SkyWest Airlines in 1994 and spent its entire career with SkyWest. It logged 46,219 hours in the air.
Fred Cromer, President of Bombardier Commercial Aircraft, noted the CRJ200 was “part of a family that has proven to be the most successful regional aircraft program in history…we have and are continuously challenging the status quo.” He cited Bombardier’s spacious new CRJ Atmosphere cabin design and its innovative 50-seat CRJ550 aircraft, launched in February, as examples.
The CRJ200 will provide students with an opportunity to work on current technology at a time when aerospace graduates are in high demand across Canada and around the world.
Significant helicopter contributions were also among the many contributions. The Canadian Coast Guard gave Centennial a Messershmitt-Bolkow-Blohm Bo.105 twin-engined workhorse. Ontario’s ORNGE air ambulance service similarly gifted a retired Sikorsky S-76 turbo helicopter.
The Ontario government provided $25.8 million for the project, while Ottawa granted $18.4 million in Strategic Investment Funds. Centennial and its partners and donors funded the remainder.
The team could not have chosen a more famous location for this leading-edge project than Downsview, an indelible part of Canada’s aviation heritage.
As Allan McClelland, Dean of the School of Transportation observed: “For decades, Torontonians travelled around the periphery of Downsview Park with little knowledge of what the land encompasses. Viewed at night from space, it’s largely a dark field in the middle of an illuminated city.”
However, with the new Centre, Mr. McClelland noted: “I’m proud to say we are bringing a brilliant light to where there was little previously” on the hallowed ground of de Havilland Canada, the former RCAF Station Downsview and Bombardier Aerospace.
Mr. McClelland noted that it wasn’t easy to selectively demolish and renovate a building that first took root in 1929 with de Havilland and grew organically with additions and sheds built as needed.
“What we inherited was a hodge-podge of workshops, offices and storage facilities whose floors rarely lined up!,” he said. “As you can imagine, it was quite an ordeal just to create some continuity in this building, with the number of stairs and ramps minimized where we could. The old hangar was taken down, replaced by this bejeweled building large enough for today’s aircraft.”
Ann Buller also took pride in a hidden surprise on the campus: a unique green hangar roof with a massive Centennial College logo depicted in brown. “The brown is actually rich garden soil, which will support succulents, hardy green plants that will thrive atop the hangar. Once they grow, we will have a truly green roof, and one that aligns with our corporate identity,” she said. “Look for it the next time you are on the glide path to Pearson International Airport.”
DAIR partners include Centennial College; the University of Toronto Institute for Aerospace Studies; Ryerson University; York University; Bombardier; Pratt & Whitney Canada; Honeywell; Collins Aerospace; Safran Landing Systems; MDA Corp.; Siemens; Mitshubishi Heavy Industries Canada Aerospace; Canadensys Aerospace; and FlightSafety International.
The CAHS extends congratulations to Centennial College and the collaborative partnership that has produced such an impressive aerospace training facility.
The official brochure for the opening of the new campus highlights Downsview's history in Canadian aviation.
Transition from the old to the new at Downsview illustrated on the cover of a brochure for the opening of the new Downsview Campus.
The main entrance foyer to the college, which was basically the front entrance to the TAM. This photo was taken one week prior to the open house. (Sheldon Benner photo)
The new helicopter bay which was the south end of the main hall for TAM. (Sheldon Benner photo)
East end of the renovated facility looking at the enlarged hangar, now filled with many aircraft and engines as well as the fenced ramp in front of the hangar. (Sheldon Benner photo)
NW corner of the original DHC design and administration office in front of the original plant. The original yellow brick walls were preserved but the windows were replaced. (Sheldon Benner photo)
The CRJ200 donated to Centennial College by Bombardier spent its entire career with SkyWest Airlines.
Another view of the Bombardier CRJ200 donated to Centennial outside the large hangar on Apr 25 2019.
This attractive Cessna 180 has been part of Centennial's aircraft fleet for 30 years.
Centennial College Cessna Conquest 425 outside the hangar at Downsview Campus.
Cessna Citation II is among the newer aircraft that have joined Centennial's fleet.