EASA: Initial pilot licensing requirements to address LOC-I

The European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) has published an Opinion proposing amendments to the training requirements for initial pilot licensing to prevent loss of control in flight (LOC-I) situations.

The Opinion proposes to integrate upset prevention and recovery training (UPRT) requirements and provisions into the EU pilot training regulatory framework. EASA says the UPRT requirements aim to make pilots more resilient in coping with unexpected aircraft upset situations.

The requirements are based on International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) standards and recommended practices and have been developed by EASA in consultation with leading industry experts.

They mainly focus on pilots who intend to pursue a pilot career with a commercial airline:

“Such pilots would likely complete either an aeroplane airline transport pilot licence (ATPL) or a multi-crew pilot licence (MPL) integrated training course, followed by training to act as a pilot in a multi-crew environment on respective aircraft,” states the Opinion.

The newly developed advanced UPRT course is to be mandated as an addendum to ATP and MPL training courses and to serve as a prerequisite prior to commencing the first type rating course in multi-pilot operations.

Patrick Ky, EASA’s Executive Director, said, “This is an important milestone in addressing loss of control in flight, which remains a major area of concern for aviation safety.”

The proposed requirements are expected to be adopted by the European Commission by 8th April 2018. It was agreed with the Member States on 28th June 2017 to provide an additional transition period until 8th April 2019 to implement these UPRT provisions.

The Opinion concludes, “For training towards non-commercial licences (light aircraft pilot licence (LAPL), private pilot licence (PPL)), the existing training syllabi in AMC will be slightly revised to introduce UPRT elements, taking into account already existing training syllabi.”