You’re in Good Hands

When was the last time you had to take a test that put your job on the line? A multifaceted, multi-hour assessment of your physical skills, decision-making ability, and systems knowledge that, if you failed, could cost you your employment?  Depending on the type of operation and their crew position, pilots may be required to take a check as often as every 6 months or a infrequently as every 24 months.

If the pilot cannot demonstrate proficiency in any of the required maneuvers to the examiner during the annual checkride, he or she cannot fly in the commercial operation again until they are retrained and a subsequent proficiency checkride is satisfactorily completed.

Beyond the Regulatory Requirements

While the FAA regulatory requirements may seem strict—especially to those in professions that don’t require such formal testing—some in the industry feel they’re not enough.

“Virtually all the pilots involved in accidents have been legally proficient,” said Brian Moore, senior vice president of operations at FlightSafety International [Moore has since been promoted to CEO and director of operations at FlightSafety Textron Aviation Training]. “That’s why we’re not satisfied with just meeting the regulatory requirements. It’s not about just checking the boxes and sending the pilots out there but training to achieve the highest level of preparedness and safety.”

FlightSafety has provided simulator training for business aviation pilots since A. L. Ueltschi, a pilot for Pan American Airways, founded the company in 1951 under the premise that business aviation pilots should have access to the same high-quality training as airline pilots. Today’s high-fidelity full-motion simulators allow pilots to experience scenarios that can’t or shouldn’t be performed in the aircraft, from equipment failures to extreme weather to difficult approach and runway configurations.

“FSI has a relentless focus on enhancing the quality of our course, the realism of the simulator, and the quality of our instructors with the goal of helping each pilot become more proficient and prepared out in the field,” said Moore.

Each recurrent training course combines several hours of “ground school”—including a refresher on aviation rules and regulations plus aircraft-specific systems training—with flying procedures and maneuvers in the simulator under the watchful eyes of an experienced FlightSafety instructor. Both the FSI courseware and the instructors go beyond the regulatory checkboxes by introducing scenarios that provide a deeper understanding of aircraft systems and codependencies.

Partnerships Key to Continuous Improvement

Some scenarios have developed out of FSI’s partnerships with aviation industry leaders. Working with GE Digital data analysts since late 2021, a team of FSI safety experts work with instructors to address trends and insights from the aggregated data of more than 1,300 business aircraft, incorporating the insights into FSI courseware as appropriate. For example, the team created a 15-minute brief focused on stable-approach execution after GE Digital data pointed to a correlation between unstable approaches and aircraft overrunning the runway.

“We’re so excited about the partnership with GE Digital because we’re interested in where the data indicates the industry is struggling, and then targeting those issues from a training standpoint,” said Moore. “If we can focus on what’s happening out there in the real world and provide enhanced training in those areas, those pilots will be more prepared to handle those situations in real life.”

Another key partnership involves working with the Presage Group, a leader in predictive human behavior in the workplace, to conduct studies on go-around decision-making by single-pilot and dual-pilot operations. The single-pilot study, conducted at FSI in conjunction with the Citation Jet Pilots Association, resulted in the association’s Safe to Land Initiative, which was rolled out in January 2022. A second study initiated by FSI focuses on dual-pilot crews in Gulfstream G500/G600 and G650 aircraft, with insights and comparisons between the two studies to be incorporated into FlightSafety Gulfstream training sometime in 2023.

“We invest heavily in internal instructor training to enhance not only their technical knowledge but also their teaching manner by incorporating the latest in adult learning theory,” said Moore. “We help the instructors with their approach to identifying areas of improvement with individual pilots to help them become more prepared out in the field.”

FlightSafety instructors are also encouraged to remain actively flying in business aviation to bring that experience back to the classroom. Instructor safety groups pool their knowledge and experience to identify gaps and help shape curriculum. For example, after a high-profile 2020 helicopter accident, an FSI instructor safety group developed an Inadvertent Flight into Instrument Meteorological Conditions for Rotorcraft spotlight, which was subsequently incorporated into all recurrent rotorcraft training.

“About a month after we rolled out the Inadvertent IMC curriculum, a helicopter pilot from a state agency who went through the course with his tactical officer was flying a night mission and had an encounter with inadvertent IMC,” said Moore. “He applied the training and was able to recover back to base. He wrote us a long letter crediting the FSI training with saving their lives.”

Executives in Back Need Executive-level Expertise Up Front

Simulator training is not cheap, and there are times when aircraft owners or operators balk at the cost of sending their crews every six to 12 months. But doing so allows them to build a higher degree of skill and experience than flying alone provides. In a continuous-improvement environment like FlightSafety’s, pilots benefit from the wisdom of instructors and shared experiences of other pilots.

“Who do you want flying the airplane?” asked Moore. “Someone with a basic-level knowledge who has done just enough to check the boxes, or a PhD-level individual who knows the aircraft inside and out, and who’s been training in a simulator in all sorts of scenarios?”

Moore likened the need for professional pilots to the need for professional translators in a business situation. “If you’re going to Paris for personal reasons but you don’t know any French, you can generally get by with Google Translate,” said Moore. “But if you’re conducting high-level business negotiations in French, you need a top-notch translator fluent in English and French who also understands terms specific to your business or industry.”

FlightSafety provides ample opportunities for pilots to continue sharpening their skills and expanding their knowledge beyond the classroom. FSI maintains an extensive library of online courses in topics such as navigation, international procedures, human factors/crew resource management, avionics, safety, and security. These are available to any pilot, with many courses under $250.

“These courses are geared towards rounding out pilot knowledge and refreshing them on specific types of operations,” Moore said. “Recently, we completely overhauled our international procedures course to capture recent operational changes in the region.”

FlightSafety’s Master Aviator program recognizes those pilots who attend training at least every eight months (initial, recurrent, or prior-experience course) and complete a certain number of supplemental simulator, eLearning, or LiveLearning courses. The aircraft-specific program covers 21 models from Airbus Helicopters to Gulfstreams, so pilots can earn Master Aviator status in more than one aircraft.

Master-level Expertise for Non-pilot Aviation Professionals

Though FSI is known for its simulator pilot training, it also provides in-depth training for other aviation professionals, including cabin and flight attendants, aircraft schedulers and dispatchers, and maintenance technicians. Maintenance technicians can earn Master Technician certificates in six areas: airframe, avionics, cabin systems, composites, engine-specific, and management.

“The core training for technicians is just as intensive as our pilot training,” said Moore. “Recently we’ve even introduced virtual engine simulators that allow technicians to practice taking apart engines, installing line replaceable units, and troubleshooting scenarios. Large corporate flight departments can come to FSI for one-stop shopping: pilot, cabin crew, and maintenance personnel training are at the same intensive level, ensuring a high level of proficiency and preparedness across their entire flight department.”

Confidence for Back-seat Drivers

FlightSafety has even developed courses for the VIPs in the back of the corporate airplane and spouses of single-pilot owner-operator aircraft. The Executive Emergency Training course is tailored to business aircraft passengers to provide a basic understanding of aircraft systems, onboard emergency equipment, and security and safety procedures. These can be especially important for international operations.

“We send instructors all over the world, so we conduct risk assessments to determine the risks going into various areas,” said Moore. “We look at health risks, safety, security, and much more, and roll those into the executive training.”

For spouses and family members who fly with single-pilot operators, FSI offers the Confidence Builder program. This program incorporates classroom training with simulator time to train non-pilots on how to get the aircraft back on the ground safely if the pilot becomes incapacitated, as recently happened on a Cessna Caravan flying from the Bahamas to Fort Pierce, Florida. A passenger with no previous flight experience landed the single-engine aircraft in Palm Beach, Florida, based on guidance from an air traffic controller after the pilot became sick and fell unconscious in the air.

“The passenger kept his composure and air traffic control did an amazing job of coaching him back on the ground,” said Moore. “Our Confidence Builder course does exactly that—shows what to do, how to contact ATC, and how to manipulate the gear and power levers to land safely. And then they fly a few scenarios in the simulator to gain the confidence that they could do it for real if they had to.”