Making the most out of your training sessions
Many providers offer optional but instrumental programs to complement regular recurrent training.
By Marty Rollinger
ATP/CFII. Falcon 2000 EASy
Contributing Writer
Flight simulator sessions are essential to professional pilot training and certification. They provide pilots with the opportunity to experience and manage flight conditions in a controlled environment, enhancing safety and proficiency without the risks associated with actual flight.
For corporate jet, turboprop, and helicopter pilots, sim training is not just a regulatory requirement, but also a critical aspect of their ongoing professional development.
In the realm of corporate aviation, sim training offers a range of scenarios, from routine operations to emergency management. Pilots can practice instrument procedures, cockpit resource management, and adverse weather handling, among many other skills.
The training is designed to be as realistic as possible, using the actual avionics in specific aircraft cockpits for the most authentic experience.
One thing all business and commercial aviators have in common is the repeated trek to a training center to accomplish recurrent training. Light aircraft pilots are familiar with the bi-annual flight review. As pilots gain certification in more complex machines, they are required to pass a pilot-in-command (PIC) proficiency check in order be qualified to captain aircraft that require more than one crew member.
The requirement for recurrent training in the US comes from Federal Aviation Regulations Part 61. 61.58 states that PIC proficiency checks can be done in an aircraft, but that may not be practical or safe. Full motion sims are the sensible way to conduct recurrent checks. These sims are magnificent machines that cost millions of dollars. Completing the annual 61.58 check counts as a bi-annual flight review, and the pilot generally accomplishes enough instrument events that he or she is instrument current for the next 6 months.
Three companies dominate the business aviation simulator training market – FlightSafety International (FSI), CAE, and Simcom. These training centers are regulated in accordance with Title 14 of the Code of Federal Regulations (14 CFR), Part 142 Training Centers.
Part 142 Training Centers require dedicated training facilities, flight instructor oversight, and FAA-approved course curricula. Part 141 Training Schools are similar, but Part 141 organizations are a actual schools with aircraft, while Part 142 institutions have no real aircraft.
CAE
CAE, originally named Canadian Aviation Electronics, was founded in 1947. Training is conducted by more than 2000 flight instructors in 50-plus locations in more than 40 countries. CAE has an airline training focus with nearly twice as many training centers catering to airline training (36) as corporate (15) and helicopter (10). The company acquired SimuFlite training centers in 2001.
The 2 largest centers, located in Dallas TX and Morristown NJ, are now branded CAE SimuFlite. The DFW (Intl, Dallas-Fort Worth TX) facility is the largest business aviation training facility in the world, with 426,000 sq ft, 34 simulators, and approximately 450 employees. CAE is the only public company of the 3. Revenues in 2023 were reported at more than $4 billion.
FlightSafety International
FSI is second in longevity to CAE. It was founded in 1951 by Albert Lee Ueltschi, and currently has 25 training centers in the US, with 13 additional locations spread across the globe.
The company has more than 320 flight simulators and 1600 flight instructors providing courses for corporate, government, and military customers in 135 aircraft types from 25 aircraft manufacturers. The corporate headquarter is located at LGA (LaGuardia, New York NY). Berkshire Hathaway, the large multinational conglomerate holding company, acquired FSI in 1996.
Simcom
The much smaller Simcom has 3 training centers in the Orlando FL area, and one in Scottsdale AZ. The company has more than 40 simulators and 100-plus flight instructors. In 2019, CAE purchased 50% of Simcom holdings.
Above & beyond 61.58
Sim training is not only about meeting regulatory requirements. It should primarily be focused on enhancing pilot skills and ensuring the highest levels of safety in corporate aviation. With the ever-evolving technology and increasing complexity of modern aircraft, sims are instrumental for pilots.
Pilots or flight departments wishing to exceed the 61.58 minimum regulatory standards can choose to participate in the same training more frequently than required. Many flight departments send their pilots to recurrent simulator training at a 6-month interval. Alternatively, additional simulator time can be purchased to conduct extra training. It is no surprise that the aviation insurance industry favors shorter recurrent training intervals and additional training.
Training vendors offer supplementary courses covering international procedures, controller-pilot data link communications (CPDLC), reduced vertical separation minima (RVSM), crew resource management (CRM), performance based navigation (PBN), fatigue risk management, dangerous goods, cold weather operations, high altitude training, and many more topics. Both CAE and FSI offer online versions of many of these courses, enabling the client to complete the supplementary material from home.
And for those who want to far exceed the 61.58 mandated training, FSI offers Master Aviator and Advanced Training programs on select aircraft. These programs go beyond the basics, offering enhanced professional development and deeper knowledge of aircraft.
Top gun for corporate aviators
For the past decade, the FSI Master Aviator program has provided challenging training that improves skills and prepares pilots to react correctly to a broad range of demanding, unexpected situations.
To become a master aviator, the pilot completes a series of advanced training courses along with a choice of electives. The courses provide a more in-depth understanding of the specific aircraft. The progressive curriculum expands aviation education beyond the fundamentals covered by initial and recurrent training.
Touted benefits include industry and peer recognition, extensive knowledge of the aircraft flown that ensures a safe and correct response to unexpected situations, improved airmanship, and expanded professional and personal development.
Advanced aircraft-specific courses are designed to enhance flying skills, decision-making, and crew communication. Master aviator status is specific to aircraft model, so a pilot can attain Master Aviator status in more than one fixed-wing aircraft and/or helicopter type. Earning the Master Aviator designation involves significant commitment that must be completed within 4 years from the start date.
FSI advanced training
There are more options for pilots or flight departments looking for advanced training opportunities, but can’t commit the time, energy, attention, and/or the monetary resources to the master aviator training program – they may purchase advanced training à la carte from FSI.
The advanced pilot courses are designed to enable flight crews to respond to challenging situations and achieve the highest level of safety while developing solid flying skills.
These courses go well beyond the essentials covered in recurrent training. Compelling scenarios deliver unique insights regarding the aircraft and help ensure that pilots respond safely and correctly to various flight situations. I have personally attended the advanced energy management and advanced cockpit resource management courses, and was delighted with the course content and conduct.
Other courses specific to fixed-wing aircraft offered are titled advanced upset recovery and rejected takeoff go/no-go decision-making. Helicopter courses include surviving inadvertent instrument meteorological conditions (IMC), advanced energy management, and advanced cockpit resource management.
Training center challenges
Training centers have been greatly affected by the recent pilot hiring frenzy, and are now doubly challenged as they have seen increased demand for their service while experiencing significant simulator instructor attrition. Sim instructors must be highly trained and credentialed. As rated pilots themselves, many have left for greener pastures because of the strong pilot hiring environment. Consequently, flight departments are experiencing long scheduling lead times, so they must reserve initial and recurrent simulator training slots up to a year in advance.
Regulatory environment
A recent FAA action caused disruptions in sim training scheduling. In 2022, the Office of Flight Standards, Training, and Simulation Group (AFS-280) sent an Action Letter to the Part 142 Training Centers, stating that all tasks must be “trained prior to checking,” and that “progressive” training is not per guidance/authorization. When asked why FAA went “literal” after 30 years of progressive checking, there was no specific event cited that seems to have precipitated the change.
Commencing January 1, 2024, training centers had to train all tasks first prior to checking. At CAE, many scheduled 4-day training events now became 5-day visits. This created a cascade of scheduling changes and challenges. Our flight department takes advantage of the CAE 5-day Falcon 2000 EASy recurrent training course, which involves 2 days of ground school followed by 3 days of sim training. Prior to the recent changes, the 3 simulator sessions consisted of the progressive check conducted via a cold weather focused day, followed by a hot weather focused day, and a line oriented flight training (LOFT) day. The 61.58 check was complete after the second sim day, thus allowing the LOFT session to be highly customized to our specific requests.
I attended my 24th recurrent training session on the Falcon 2000 EASy in February of this year. As a result of the FAA changes, I was given the choice of flying a pre-check session, followed by the formal check, and then the usual LOFT or flying a pre-check session, the cold weather focused formal check session, and then the hot weather formal check. I chose the first option, preserving the coveted customized LOFT session. Flying the pre-check followed by an identical check was not a particularly desirable use of valuable simulator time.
As formal training centers are regulated under FAR Part 142, the centers must serve 2 masters – regulatory agencies (FAA, EASA, etc), and their paying clients. Client requests for session customization may be dismissed with comments along the lines of “we are unable to accommodate that request because we do not have regulatory approval to do that.” Programs at the training centers have been certified by a regulator, and any requested training not contained within that authorization will likely meet with disapproval.
Preparation
Traveling to training can produce both excitement and anxiety. There are scheduling, logistical, and administrative check-in challenges to overcome. A captain in a leadership role is usually comfortably positioned during day-to-day flight operations, with a large amount of authority and autonomy. In the training environment, that changes. That same captain is professionally evaluated, critiqued, and coached. Attending the sim session has the potential to bruise a pilot’s ego – or worse. As a highly experienced aviator, I must remind myself to have an open mind to new ideas, alternative perspectives, and improvement opportunities. To perform well during the proficiency check, I find it necessary to study ahead of time. I review the applicable aircraft flight manual (AFM), flashcards, and notes from previous training experiences.
Simulators are not always exactly representative of the type of equipment that pilots operate. To prevent confusion while in the box, I advise reviewing those differences ahead of time. I travel to training with a plan that includes special interest items which I want to experience in the simulator in order to deepen my understanding of the aircraft.
Closing
Training empowers pilots to perform at their best every day in the challenging and unforgiving aviation environment. Sim training is a vital part of the aviation industry, providing pilots with the skills and confidence to operate aircraft safely and efficiently.
With the availability of high-quality training facilities offered by CAE, FSI, and SIMCOM, corporate jet, turboprop, and helicopter pilots have access to impressive training opportunities. As the industry continues to grow and evolve, so too will the importance of sim training in preparing pilots for the challenges of the skies.
Marty Rollinger has more than 41 years of flight experience in 80 different aircraft types. A career US Marine Corps pilot, he is a graduate of the USAF Test Pilot School. He is a Falcon 2000LX captain for a Midwestern operator, and a member of the Falcon Operator Advisory Board.