The Canadair CT-114 Tutor (company model CL-41) is a jet trainer that was designed and produced by Canadian aircraft manufacturer Canadair. It served as the standard jet trainer of the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF), and later Canadian Armed Forces, between the early 1960s and 2000.
Development commenced as a private venture by the company. On 13 January 1960, the prototype performed its maiden flight; a year and a half later, the Canadian Government placed a major order for the type. The RCAF would be the dominant user of the type, but a limited number were exported as well. Specifically, the CL-41G model, which was supplied to the Royal Malaysian Air Force (RMAF), served as a ground-attack aircraft up until its withdrawal.
The Tutor served as the Canadian Armed Forces primary jet trainer from the 1960s up until 2000, at which point it was finally retired from this role. It was replaced by a combination of the newer British-built CT-155 Hawk and American-built CT-156 Harvard II until the retirement of the Hawk fleet in 2024. While the majority of Tutors have been retired, a small number are still being used by the RCAF's Snowbirds aerobatics team.
Development
Origins
The beginnings of the CL-41 Tutor can be found in a decision by Canadian aircraft manufacturer Canadair to develop its own indigenous trainer aircraft as a private venture. The design was the product of the company's in-house Preliminary Design department.
Flight testing
On 13 January 1960, the prototype performed its maiden flight, flown by project pilot Ian MacTavish. Originally, the first flight had been scheduled to take place in early 1959, but was delayed due to issues relating to engine development. This change of engine had required no redesign as the fuselage had been developed to accommodate a wide range of engines without structural modification being necessary; in addition to the JT12A-5 and J85, the Armstrong-Siddeley Viper ASV11, the Continental Gabizo, the Rolls-Royce RB.108, and the Fairchild J83-R-1 had been studied during the early stages of design work. The Tutor is furnished with manual flight controls, which incorporate spring tabs. It is intentionally aerodynamically stable in flight, a factor which traditionally has aided in the training of fresh pilots unfamiliar with the demands of flight. During 2000, the majority of Tutors were retired, with type being succeeded as the RCAF's principal training aircraft by a combination of the newer British-built CT-155 Hawk and American-built CT-156 Harvard II until 2024.
Aerobatics
thumb|Snowbirds at an airshow
During 1967, a batch of ten Tutors were modified for use as a formation aerobatic aircraft by the RCAF (and later the unified Canadian Armed Forces) display team, the Golden Centennaires to celebrate Canada's centennial year. At the end of the 1967 season, the display team was disbanded, thus its aircraft returned to routine training duties. In 1971, a new formation team was formed at 2CFFTS (Two Canadian Armed Forces Flying Training School) at CFB Moose Jaw, and once again adopted the type. The following year, the name "Snowbirds" was chosen for the team; during 1978, the team received squadron status as 431 Air Demonstration Squadron.
Since its formation, the Snowbirds display team has regularly performed at air shows and special events, including the annual flypast on Canada Day over the capital city, Ottawa. According to journalist Guy Norris, a defining trait of their aerobatics is the physically demanding formation flights performed, as well as locally developed manoeuvres such as the ‘Big Goose’. Unlike most display teams, the Snowbirds do not have a support aircraft; all spares and useful material could be carried by the aircraft themselves in storage areas located in the nose or the wing root.
- CT-114003 - Canadian Museum of Flight, Langley, British Columbia.
- CT-114004 - Royal Aviation Museum of Western Canada, Winnipeg, Manitoba.
- CT-114014 - Bagotville Cadet Training Center, CFB Bagotville, La Baie, Québec
- CT-114015 - National Air Force Museum of Canada, Quinte West, Ontario.
- CT-114021 - Western Development Museum, Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan.
- CT-114036 - CFB Moose Jaw, Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan.
- CT-114038 - Canadian Warplane Heritage Museum, Mount Hope, Ontario.
- CT-144075 - Shearwater Aviation Museum, Shearwater, Nova Scotia.
- CT-114076 - Reynolds Museum, Wetaskiwin, Alberta.
- CT-114078 - Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan.
- CT-114083 - Cold Lake, Alberta.
- CT-114114 - Cold Lake Air Force Museum, Cold Lake, Alberta.
- CT-114115 - Comox Visitor Information Centre, Comox, British Columbia.
- CT-114153 - Base Borden Military Museum, Borden, Ontario.
- CT-114187 - Millennium Park, Creston, British Columbia.
Surviving aircraft
thumb|Aerospace Engineering Test Establishment Canadair Tutor
thumb|CT-114 cockpit
Although the CL-41 Tutor has been retired from active training, 26 Tutors continue to fly with the Canadian Armed Forces Snowbirds and the Aerospace Engineering Test Establishment at CFB Cold Lake or are in short-term storage.
As of August 2011, there were three CL-41Gs and one CT-114 on the U.S. civil registry, while none were so registered in Canada.
During 2001, a CL-41G was given to Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in Daytona Beach, Florida, by actor John Travolta.