At Simnest we truly believe that training devices other than Full flight simulators will increasingly have their place in the airline training system, making the training process much more flexible and cost-effective from an operational perspective.
Proposed EASA regulation changes according to NPA 2020-15 mean that Simnest’ simulators could gain more training credit, opening new markets for the fixed base devices. In preparation for this paradigm shift in the FSTD industry, Simnest have engaged in consultancy with Mark Dransfield from SimOps to guide us through the process to determine the FSTD Capability Signature of our simulator product range.
About NPA 2020-15
The objective of this Notice of Proposed Amendment (NPA) is to amend the EU regulatory framework with a view to maintaining a high level of aviation safety by applying an innovative approach to the capabilities classification of future flight simulation training devices. The paradigm proposed, training providers are required to identify the device capabilities (referred to as ‘FSTD Capability Signature’ (FCS)) based on analysing regulatory training task objectives against FSTD features and fidelity levels. The identified FCS is subsequently matched with training devices available on the market having at least the same FCS. This allows training providers to use the most appropriate and latest innovative training devices. The application of features and fidelity level criteria enables:
1. more flexibility in obtaining training credits by using other types of training devices — different from a full flight simulator (FFS);
2. improvement of the visibility from the training side on the capabilities of the different devices; and
3. the use of new technologies in training thereby improving safety by making a clear link between FCL (type rating training) and OPS (operator recurrent training) and the Certification Specifications for Aeroplane Flight Simulation Training Devices (CS-FSTD(A)).
The proposed amendments are expected to maintain safety, promote more cost- effective training and ensure alignment with ICAO. The stakeholders mostly affected by the proposed changes will be aircraft manufacturers, FSTD data providers, FSTD manufacturers and organisations operating FSTDs. Competent authorities (CAs) and approved training organisations (ATOs) will be affected in a varying degree, depending on the type and qualification of the FSTD and its use in training.
(Source: EASA)
You may read more about the topic on the EASA official site.