CAE, a global leader in training for the civil aviation, defence and security, and healthcare markets, has reported revenue of CA$722.0 million for the first quarter of fiscal year 2019, compared with CA$656.2 million in the first quarter last year. First quarter net income attributable to equity holders was CA$69.4 million compared to CA$59.6 million last year. First quarter operating profit was CA$98.5 million (13.6% of revenue) compared with CA$91.3 million (13.9% of revenue) in the first quarter of last year.
Civil Aviation Training Solutions (Civil) revenue was CA$430.9 million, up 16% compared to the same quarter last year, and segment operating income was CA$78.3 million (18.2% of revenue), up 14% compared to the first quarter last year. First quarter Civil training centre utilization was 80%.
During the quarter, Civil signed training solutions contracts valued at US$499.3 million, plus additional contracts involving joint ventures, including an exclusive long-term pilot training agreement with Asiana Airlines which involves the adoption of the CAE RiseTM training system. CAE RiseTM is a digital innovation that allows instructors to deliver standardized training in accordance with airline Standard Operating Procedures and enables the objective assessment of pilot competencies using live data during training sessions, and through deep analytical insights. In addition, Civil signed a new agreement to create a pilot training joint venture in Colombia with Avianca Airlines and entered exclusive long-term training contracts with Volaris and OJets. Civil sold 18 full-flight simulators (FFSs) during the quarter to customers in all regions. Since the end of the quarter, Civil has signed eight FFS sales, for 26 year-to-date, and it commenced operations of the Singapore CAE Flight Training Pte. Ltd. joint venture for pilot training.
The Civil book-to-sales ratio, not including orders won by joint ventures, was 1.16x for the quarter and 1.45x for the last 12 months. The Civil backlog at the end of the quarter was CA$4.1 billion.
