Nicholas Byron Cavadias

Nicholas Byron Cavadias, LL.D.(Hon), was born of Greek parents on February 8, 1929, in Galgaun, India. He received his high school education in Greece, and his engineering training at the University of Southampton and the London City and Guilds Institute.

From the beginning, his career was in the application of electronics to aviation. He started as a radio engineer for TAE Greek Airlines in 1946. In 1950 he moved to the U.K., and in 1953 he joined the Royal Air Force, where he became a ground radar specialist. Cavadias came to Canada in 1956 and joined the engineering department of Canadian Aviation Electronics Ltd. (CAE), a Montreal-based company, designing, manufacturing and servicing avionics equipment for the Royal Canadian Air Force. He became President of that company 18 years later.

The company entered the flight simulation field early in the 1950's when Canada purchased a fleet of Avro CF-100 all-weather fighter planes for the RCAF and needed flight simulators to train its pilots. Success there, and the cancellation of the Avro Arrow in 1959, positioned CAE to provide the simulator for the Lockheed CF-104 Starfighter in the early 1960's. Cavadias was Project Manager of the highly successful CF-104 flight simulator program, which supplied 32 systems to Canada and its North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) allies from 1960 to 1963. In 1961 CAE established its first off-shore subsidiary simulator company in Germany, CAE Electronics GmbH.

In 1963 CAE Industries was formed, and the original company, Canadian Aviation Electronics, became CAE Electronics, the principal subsidiary of the new parent company.

Cavadias continued his rise at CAE Electronics. By 1967 he was Vice-President Operations, responsible for engineering, manufacturing, program management and quality assurance. In 1975 he was appointed President of CAE Electronics Ltd. In this role, he focused the company's efforts on  simulation, and initiated a period of unprecedented growth.

In addition to the company's involvement in commercial and military aircraft flight simulation, space and air traffic applications, nuclear power station simulation, and oil field automation, other fields of endeavour included power generation, transmission and distribution automation, machinery control systems for Naval ships, and airborne magnetic anomaly submarine detection systems.

CAE Electronics grew to become the number one force in the international commercial flight simulation business. Under Cavadias' leadership, CAE's share of the world market for commercial airline flight simulators increased from less than 3 percent to over 60 percent. CAE exports over 90 percent of its simulators, which are used to train pilots around the world by over thirty airlines in more than thirty-six countries.

In 1990 Cavadias was promoted to Senior Vice-President, Aerospace and Electronics Group of CAE Inc., the Toronto-based corporate parent. He was responsible for four companies, including the U.S.-based CAE-Link Corporation, the Germany-based CAE Electronics GmbH, CAE Electronics Ltd. in Montreal, and Northwest Industries in Edmonton. At that time, these companies were earning a total revenue of over one billion dollars annually.

Robert Bourassa and Byron Cavadias in simulator

Vice-Premier Zhu Rong Ji of the People's Republic of China visiting CAE in May 1993.

Cavadias retired in 1994 after a 38-year career with CAE. His efforts resulted in many world firsts, such as the 1983 Boeing 757 simulator which was the first new simulator ever to be FAA-certified prior to aircraft certification.

The introduction of flight simulators for complex aircraft like the CF-18 'Hornet', the Lockheed CP-140 'Aurora', and the C-130 'Hercules' enhanced flight safety and reduced wear and tear on valuable airframes.

Cavadias was active in the Canadian aerospace industry outside of CAE. He served as Director of the Aerospace Industries Association of Canada. He contributed to Canadian government policy as a member of the Consultative Committee on the Electronics Industry, and to New Brunswick's government while on the Advisory Board for Science and Technology. He was awarded an Honorary Doctor of Laws degree by Concordia University in Montreal in 1985, which recognized his ongoing encouragement of links between industry and the university community.

CF-18 Simulator (CAE)

He was recognized in 1988 by the Commander-in-Chief of the USAF Military Airlift Command for significant contributions to their C-5 simulator program, and in 1990 by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) for outstanding cooperation between government and industry on the Crew Station Research Program. In 1990 he was the recipient of the C.D. Howe Award presented by the Canadian Aeronautics and Space Institute for leadership in Canadian aeronautics and space activities.

In retirement, Cavadias lives in Kingston, Ontario, with his wife Juliet, enjoying their family, sailing, woodworking, and classical music, and, recently, golf.

In 2001 he was honoured by the Royal Aeronautical Society with the Flight Simulation Silver Medal for the year 2000 in a ceremony held in London, England.

Nicholas Byron Cavadias was inducted as a Member of Canada's Aviation Hall of Fame in 1996 at a ceremony held in Toronto, Ontario.