Lockheed Martin has introduced the C-130J Configurable Aircraft Trainer (JCAT), a portable, modular device for the stage between basic familiarization and full mission qualification. It shares the Virtual Simulator and instructor station of the company’s C-130J full flight simulator, so operators can move procedural and systems training off their high-end simulators.

Lockheed Martin presented the trainer in a feature published on its website on November 9, 2026. The company said shortages of qualified aircrew and maintainers threaten military forces worldwide, and that limited training capacity and long qualification timelines make the problem worse. It describes JCAT as a way for customers to build in-house training capacity and increase the number of crews moving through their training pipelines.

What the trainer is meant to do

According to Lockheed Martin, JCAT uses the same Virtual Simulator (VSIM) and Instructor Operator Station (IOS) as the C-130J Full Flight Simulator/Weapons System Trainer (FFS/WST). The company said this gives the device the same flight dynamics, system behavior and interfaces as the full simulator. By taking on intermediate procedural and systems training, JCAT is intended to leave FFS/WST sessions for advanced mission qualification, which Lockheed Martin said increases throughput, reduces wear on high-end simulators and helps aircrews progress more efficiently.

The company lists four core capabilities: a scalable design that adapts to budget cycles and changing mission requirements, a portable architecture that can be deployed quickly to a customer site, high-fidelity training that makes better use of FFS/WST time, and a common software baseline intended to simplify sustainment and keep the fleet synchronized.

The JCAT product card adds technical detail. It lists an FAA Level-D flight model and more than 1,100 malfunctions, with system models common across the C-130J product line. The cockpit replicates the C-130J’s geometry, the mission computer is rehosted to run independently of LM-CORE, and the trainer can be reconfigured for multiple C-130 models and Block versions. Lockheed Martin says its exclusive access to C-130J flight and system models makes JCAT the most accurate representation of the aircraft available.

Configurations, maintenance use and fielding

Lockheed Martin said customers can start with procedural training and systems familiarization and add capabilities as funding and mission demands grow, investing step by step toward a complete in-house training setup. The product card lists the choices: cockpit panels in full tactile, tactile and virtual, or full virtual form; control loading that is back driven or linked, spring loaded or static; visuals ranging from a static bowl with augmented or mixed reality to flat panels; and crew seats from new aircraft, refurbished seats or commercial seats.

The device is not only for pilots. Lockheed Martin’s C-130J training page lists JCAT for aircrew and maintenance training, including selected maintenance tasks and job guides, and says it supports retargeted Operational Flight Programs for the Mission Computer and CNI-SP updates. Optional additions on the product card include communications, datalink, a digital map, a terrain awareness and warning system (TAWS), ATC and enhanced sound.

Because the trainer is portable, the company said it can be set up at a home base, a forward operating location or wherever operational tempo requires, which it said cuts crew travel and training costs. The product card states that the modular design fits into existing classrooms and briefing rooms. The feature does not name a launch customer, a price or a delivery date for the first units.

Where JCAT fits in Lockheed Martin’s C-130J training business

JCAT joins a training line that Lockheed Martin says it has built over almost 30 years of preparing C-130J aircrews and maintainers. At the top sits the FFS/WST, a dynamic-motion simulator certified to FAA Level-D and EASA Level-D, with a 50° vertical by 225° horizontal field of view and a six-degree-of-freedom motion platform. Alongside it, the company offers loadmaster fuselage trainers, a Virtual Maintenance Trainer with close to 600 hours of scenario-based content, and an Observer Training Aid that works with the FFS and JCAT.

The company runs the Hercules Training Center in Marietta, Georgia, established in 2018, where it says more than 1,700 students have graduated. It also built the France Germany Multinational Training Center at Évreux-Fauville Air Base in northern France with France’s Direction générale de l’armement (DGA) and the German Federal Ministry of Defence. The center supports a multinational C-130J squadron of 10 French and German aircraft.

For the US services, training runs through the C-130J Maintenance and Aircrew Training System (MATS). On April 14, 2026, Lockheed Martin announced that the Pentagon had awarded it a 10-year MATS IV contract, a sole-source indefinite delivery, indefinite quantity (IDIQ) award worth up to $1.9 billion. The program supports Air Mobility Command, the Air National Guard, Air Force Reserve Command, the US Marine Corps, Air Force Special Operations Command and Air Education and Training Command, and under MATS IV its aircrew support extends to the US Navy Reserve and the US Coast Guard.

On April 29, 2026, the company also announced it would deliver training devices and services for the E-130J Phoenix II aircraft, which is based on the C-130J and supports the US Navy’s Take Charge and Move Out (TACAMO) mission. According to Lockheed Martin’s April 14 release, the C-130J Super Hercules serves operators in 28 nations, more than 560 have been delivered, and the global fleet has passed 3 million flight hours.

Skyborne Airline Academy, which trains commercial airline pilots in Florida and the UK, is now owned by Excolere Equity Partners, a Los Angeles-based private equity group that invests in education and human capital management businesses. Financial terms were not disclosed.

In a press release dated November 2, 2026, Skyborne said the investment will provide additional resources to accelerate future expansion, strengthen its global airline relationships and continue to invest in the student experience. The academy will keep the Skyborne brand and its existing management team, and the company said day-to-day operations, airline partnerships and student programs will not change.

What the new owner gets

Skyborne was founded in 2017 by its chief executive, Lee Woodward. According to the release, it operates in the United Kingdom, the United States and India, employs more than 400 staff and flies a fleet of over 60 aircraft. Its headquarters are at Gloucestershire Airport, with a second UK base at Bournemouth Airport.

In 2021, Skyborne acquired FlightSafety Academy’s facility in Vero Beach, Florida. The company says more than 28,000 commercial pilots have trained at that site. Skyborne lists approvals from the UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), the FAA and EASA among others, and offers structured pathways to the flight deck, including fully funded courses and tagging programs with major airlines.

Woodward called the deal “a significant milestone in Skyborne’s growth.” He said the academy would continue to develop professional airline pilots “with an investor that shares our passion for education and progress,” and that as it scales it remains committed to its airline partners, students and the communities it serves.

Airline ties and funding routes

The release puts airline links at the center of Skyborne’s offer. The academy lists long-standing partnerships with IndiGo, easyJet and Ryanair, and states that 95% of its graduates are in airline employment.

In the UK, Skyborne offers fully funded places through British Airways’ Speedbird Pilot Academy and Jet2FlightPath. In the US, it partners with Sallie Mae for student funding and describes itself as one of the first flight training schools to accept the 529 College Savings Plan.

For airlines that recruit cadets from Skyborne, the release offers continuity: the existing partnerships and programs stay in place under the new owner. It does not set out new capacity targets, new bases or a timetable for the expansion the investment is meant to fund.

Who Excolere is

Excolere Equity Partners was formally launched in 2022 by Managing Partner Tony Miller with partners Pete Davis and Marcelus DeCoulode, according to an October 25, 2023, press release from GCM Grosvenor. Miller is a former co-founder and chief operating officer of The Vistria Group and a former Deputy Secretary of the US Department of Education.

That 2023 release announced a strategic partnership between Excolere and GCM Grosvenor’s Elevate strategy, which GCM Grosvenor launched in January 2023 to invest in emerging lower and middle-market buyout firms. It described Excolere as a buyout investor in the education and human capital management sectors, with targets including companies upskilling and reskilling their workforces and working adults acquiring skills and credentials. Its early investments included EPS School Specialty, a developer of K-12 literacy and math curriculum products.

The Skyborne release describes Excolere as focused exclusively on the education and human capital management sectors, working with management teams to sharpen strategy, strengthen operations and accelerate growth.

Miller said Excolere was “excited to support Skyborne’s next chapter of growth,” as the academy develops pilots and expands career opportunities for aspiring aviators. DeCoulode said: “Skyborne has built an outstanding reputation as a leader in professional pilot training.” He added that the firm would work alongside Woodward and the management team to build on that foundation.

The demand behind training investments

Long-term demand forecasts form the backdrop to the deal. Boeing’s Pilot and Technician Outlook 2026-2045 projects global demand for 674,000 new commercial pilots over the next 20 years, alongside 728,000 maintenance technicians and 1,023,000 cabin crew.

Private equity ownership of independent training providers is not new. AirPro News has covered consolidation in the sector, including Pan Am Flight Academy’s purchase of Alliance Aviation under its private equity owner, Acorn Capital Management. Florida has also seen new training capacity, including US Aviation Academy’s two new Florida campuses in May 2026.

For airline partners and prospective cadets, the details still to come are the scale and pace of the expansion Excolere is funding. The November 2 release does not give them.

Canadian training provider CAE announced the deployment of four additional full-flight simulators across the Americas on October 20, 2026, expanding localized training capacity for high-demand business jets.

Revealed during the National Business Aviation Association’s Business Aviation Convention & Exhibition (NBAA-BACE) in Las Vegas, Nevada, the expansion targets a projected long-term shortage of aviation professionals. In a press release, the company stated the new hardware will support training for the Bombardier Global 6500, Embraer Praetor 600, Pilatus PC-24, and Cessna Citation CJ4.

Expanding localized training capacity

The addition of the four simulators is designed to align CAE’s global training network with growing customer and fleet demand. By placing training hardware closer to where operators require it, the company aims to reduce the need for flight crews to travel long distances for initial and recurrent training.

While the specific cities or training center locations for the four new simulators within the Americas region were not detailed in the October 20 announcement, the deployment fits into a broader strategy of regionalized training hubs.

Alexandre Prévost, President of Civil Aviation at CAE, noted the importance of localized access for operators.

“These simulator deployments expand access to high-quality training on the aircraft our customers fly, where they need it, while delivering the quality and experience they expect from CAE. It’s about helping crews stay ready, perform at their best and fly safely.”

Addressing the aviation talent shortage

The business aviation sector is experiencing sustained growth, driving a long-term need for qualified personnel. According to CAE’s Aviation Talent Forecast, the industry will require 102,000 new business aviation professionals worldwide by 2034.

That projection comprises 33,000 new business aviation pilots and 69,000 maintenance technicians. Prévost stated that as business aviation demand grows, the company is strengthening its global training network to meet the evolving needs of operators facing these workforce pressures.

CAE’s decade of business aviation growth

Over the past decade, CAE has nearly doubled its business aviation training capacity. The company’s global business aviation training network now includes more than 130 full-flight simulators.

To support this infrastructure, CAE employs approximately 1,000 instructors worldwide. Together, this network delivers more than 300,000 hours of training annually across both pilot and maintenance disciplines.

AirPro News analysis

The decision to deploy simulators for the Global 6500, Praetor 600, PC-24, and CJ4 reflects the current delivery mix and utilization rates in the Americas. By distributing simulator capacity regionally rather than centralizing it, training providers are directly addressing operator concerns about crew downtime. In a tight labor market where 33,000 new business aviation pilots are needed over the next decade, minimizing the days crews spend traveling to training events becomes a competitive advantage for both the operators and the training providers they select.