AAETS Takes Shape

Chris Long previews the new APATS Aviation Education and Training Symposium which will be taking place in February 2015.

Although abstracts are still arriving, there are already plenty of impressive presentations to enable us to see the shape of the APATS Aviation Education and Training Symposium (AAETS), which will be held in Incheon, Republic of Korea (ROK), on 10th and 11th February 2015.

The speakers are drawn both from around the world and within the region. The keynote session includes leaders from the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport of the ROK, Incheon International Airport Corporation and Boeing.

The increased scope of this event has attracted major players such as Airbus, ICAO Trainair (the latter will have an entire session to update on its activity) and CAE. These are familiar to those who attend the world-ranging Halldale conferences, but also included will be senior representatives from universities such as Purdue, Griffith, and Western Michigan, as well as academic figures who have not previously joined our conferences. Airlines have also stepped up to the mark, with both those from the region such as Asiana, Korean Air, ANA and Air Asia sharing some of their initiatives, together with major global airlines like Emirates.

Subjects that will be addressed during the conference will include updates on some of the topics which feature in the specialist training conferences, so pilot selection, CRM and EBT will be closely investigated. However, we will also feature in greater detail a close look at some examples of international co-operation in education and training. A major part of the conference will be dedicated to an in-depth appreciation of the cultural issues which are relevant within the aviation industry, and this will reveal suggested solutions and work practices which can enhance safety and efficiency.

Acknowledged experts will discuss the continuing challenge of how to attract and retain new entrants into the broad spectrum of the aviation industry; not only those on board the aircraft. Once they are with us, we need to understand how best to train this generation. To help answer that challenge there are significant developments in technology and instructional methodologies which can render the training much more adaptive and interesting, so that it holds the attention of keen young minds.

This conference has excited responses from aircraft manufacturers, major regional airlines, aviation universities and globally-respected training equipment manufacturers and training providers. The energy which is generated through the growth in civil aviation in the region is also translating into a determined drive to put in place all the education and training tools in order to respond to the huge increase in the number of people employed in the industry. This demand globally is for skills right through from the design to the safe and efficient operation of the aircraft, but as an area of actual and predicted enormous growth, the region has a particular need of very large numbers of recruits.

This increased range of topics will create an even richer mix of delegates, and that, in turn, will result in even more extensive networking opportunities during the conference. The take-up of cross fertilisation of ideas from different disciplines, and the sharing of new initiatives, will doubtless generate even more ideas of best practice to improve performance across the board.

Alongside the conference there will be an international exhibition of training solutions providers, including flight simulators, hardware and software developers, flight schools and academic bodies.

AAETS is an official event of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport and is expected to bring together 400 senior training professionals from around the world, including 200 Korean delegates consisting of representatives from the authorities such as MoLIT and the Civil Aviation Development Agency, decision makers and senior personnel from approved training organisations, airports, ATC providers, airlines and the training industry.