Aviation Training’s Golden Age

Editorial Comment

Having observed the training and simulation community, both civil and military, for nearly 35 years, I am continually in awe of the imagination of the visionaries who conceive the technology innovations which push the envelope of training and, ultimately, safety in aviation. Yet, despite the magic we have witnessed in recent decades, especially in real-world visual image generation, my sense is that we are now on the cusp of the best of times for truly understanding how different individuals learn and how to adapt training to their style for whatever professional aviation role they choose.

CBT, EBT, IBT. Virtual, augmented, mixed andother X-realities. Data analytics. Machine learning and artificialintelligence. The return of supersonic flight. Electric-powered aircraft.Autonomous ‘flying cars.’ Performance-based navigation. Satellite-basedtracking. Biofuels. Airport security transformation. A fascinating array ofemerging and maturing technologies to enhance air travel and associated groundlogistics.

Some of the new technologies, such as VR, appearto have a relatively low cost of entry into the training arena, especiallycompared to traditional multi-million-dollar full-flight simulators. This is apositive development, attracting new talent with fresh perspectives to ourcommunity, challenging incumbents to raise their own game. The XR applicationswill improve beyond the early adopter stage and eventually find their own levelin the training scheme, just as flight training devices, computer-basedtraining, and other elements of the suite.

With the relentless growth of passenger travel,this is a very good time indeed to be in the training school, trainingequipment, or training software business. The community cannot seem to churnout new pilots and maintenance technicians fast enough to meet demand. It’s anew golden age for aviation – with even doctors and lawyers enrolling in flightschools as salaries in the cockpit continue to climb.

There may only be a couple of factors, asidefrom the next global financial crisis, which could curtail the forecastedgrowth in aviation. One is that the training community may not have thecapacity to ramp up to the level of demand … while maintaining and evenimproving the quality of graduates. Delivering the numbers without therequisite quality is decidedly not the answer, as weakness will manifest inpoor decision skills, whether in the air or on the ground, and mistakes willlead to incidents, accidents, and loss of passenger confidence.

At the moment, the public’s faith in commercialaviation is a bit shaken by the MAX factor. Serious questions have been raisedabout the regulatory certification process, the aircraft design, and the levelof differences training required. This is not just a Boeing or FAA problem,though they are at the epicenter. Doubts about one manufacturer or aircrafttype foster doubts about other OEMs, other types. Accusations against oneregulator reverberate to other authorities. Concerns for one training procedurestimulate questions about the entire training regimen. Is the industry managedproperly? Or are corners cut?

As FAA Acting Administrator Dan Elwell told thecommunity of training professionals at WATS, “a rush to judgment is unfruitful… in aviation, patience prevails.” But in this age of social media, instantindictments abound, fueled by false information and thousands of self-styledsubject experts.

At the end of the investigation, whether weeksor more likely months, it will be the professional pilots who determine thefate of this or any other aircraft. The men and women on the flight deck have avested interest in safety beyond the corporate bottom line, and if they aresatisfied with the fixes … and the training to deal with this new black swan …their confidence will redound to the business people, families and empty-nestretirees in the tethered cabins.

Elwell reminded us how incredibly safe commercial aviation has been in recent years. Now we’re in re-set. If the golden times are to continue, we all need to be sure we set it aright.

Rick Adams, CAT Editor

Published in CAT issue 3/2019