Improving training to improve safety, in addition to improving resilience and sustainability in a period of increasing momentum and growth, while managing technology, regulatory and demographic change? The 20^th European Airline Training Symposium (EATS) takes place from 8-9 November 2022 in Berlin, Germany.

Meeting this multi-faceted challenge will require an increasingly connected community, able to offer a coordinated response from all sectors of the training industry, airlines, OEMs, EASA, ATPG and those charged at the national regulators with ensuring delivery.

The training and simulation community, airlines, not-for-profit organisations and regulators have always been critical to the safe operation of the world airline system. The ultimate safety tool is, after all, well-trained people.

This is more true today as we continue our recovery from the pandemic, and it is increasingly important that the community meets to exchange ideas, validate processes and check new thinking and technology.

In a competitive industry, it is our training teams that help raise the safety bar for all, and after an unprecedented shutdown we face multiple challenges in enabling the return of our industry to full operations.

EATS typically attracts 900 attendees from more than 50 countries – all focused on best training practices. EATS 2022 is Europe’s largest aviation training event, designed by and for aviation professionals.

Pilot and Cabin Crew Conferences

The two EATS conference streams - Pilot Training and Cabin Crew Training - will feature presentations and moderated discussions led by industry experts which will focus on promoting safety and sharing best practice.

The Pilot Conference will kick off with opening remarks from Captain Yann Renier, Head of Training & Licensing, IATA, and Captain André Berger, Head of Flight Operations and Training, TUI Airline.

Captain Jean-Michel Bigarré, Founder & President, Aircraft Manufacturer Flight Training Association (AMFTA), and Captain Karl O’Neill, Chief Instructor ATO, Aer Lingus & Secretary, Aircrew Training Policy Group, will deliver an update from the OEM and airline perspectives.

An EASA Panel will then provide its annual review of recent rulemaking and initiatives.

Two full sessions, the afternoon of 8^th November and the morning of 9^th November, will address the challenges of aviation training, led by representatives from Airbus, Boeing, IATA, CAE, and easyJet.

Speakers from VistaJet, Inflow Performance, Resilient Pilot and the Centre for Aviation Psychology will explore a new era for pilot mental health.

Session 7 will focus on aviation recruitment and training for the next generation, featuring presentations from L3Harris, Egnatia Aviation, and Buckinghamshire New University.

The popular joint training technology session will close the conference, and will include the latest developments in virtual reality, game engines for flight simulation, and training for the emerging eVTOL market.

The Cabin Crew Conference will kick off, following the joint sessions with the pilot conference, with presentations from Alexandra James, Osprey Flight Solutions, and Carlin Clarke, Breeze Airways.

As typical, the cabin stream will feature a variety of panels and interactive group sessions. Topics will range from evidence-based training to inflight security challenges and disruptive passengers to emergency evacuation research, as well as personal improvement techniques for long-term memory and resilience.

Speakers come from a wide swath of the global industry, including Brussels Airlines, Nova Airlines, Lufthansa Aviation Training, Air Canada, Finnair, and Vueling, as well as Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, Coventry University, Atrainability, and Trevajan Consulting.

Sold-Out Exhibition

The EATS exhibition space is a sell-out with the leading suppliers in the training industry demonstrating their latest products and services. With over 80+ exhibiting companies there will never be a better opportunity to do three month’s business in only two days.

NEW! ATOs at EATS

Recognising the important role that Flight Academy ATOs have in providing future pilots in sufficient numbers and of a quality suitable to move on to commercial multi-engine jet operations, Halldale Group is introducing a special ATO programme for EATS 2022.

The programme is designed for key staff from ATOs by providing relevant content in the pilot conference, a dedicated ATO breakout session running alongside the main conference and a discounted delegate rate, providing full access to EATS 2022.

The ATO specific breakout session will take place on 8th November with:

• Thomas Leoff, Chair, International Association of Aviation Personnel Schools (IAAPS),
• Audrey Jeffroy, Sales Director, ALSIM,
• Captain Colin Rydon, CEO, Pilot Flight Academy. 

Special Announcement: Big Data Industry Working Group Report

The Big Data in Aviation Training working group will release its peer-reviewed analysis at EATS 2022.

The Big Data working group is led by Halldale Group and the Aircrew Training Policy Group (ATPG) and includes an international team of training and data experts. The group was initiated in August 2021 following a Head of Training (HoT) roundtable in collaboration with the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA).

“Before commencing any sort of analysis,” the draft Big Data report states, “it is vital to ensure that the analytics process and defined metrics are aligned with the business objectives and key performance indicators.”

In a Halldale survey of airline heads of training, more than 30% indicated they need help making sense of big data in relation to implementation of evidence-based training (EBT).

“Getting insights and a different perspective from the team members has been instrumental, allowing our team to embrace the opportunity to provide meaningful guidance to the industry,” said Dr. Patrizia Knabl-Schmitz, Flight Training Human Factors Specialist at Emirates, a member of the Big Data in Aviation Training team.

The Big Data in Aviation Training team is led by product owner Allyson Kukel of Halldale Group and scrum master Andy Mitchell, Chair of ATPG-Europe.

The working group is using an agile framework to develop a Minimum Viable Product (MVP), an approach which enables early-adopter users to validate a product idea early in the development cycle. Feedback is then used to improve the product in future iterations.

The Heads of Training meetings the past two years have identified five “HoT” topics facing the airline training community: Skills/Competencies Decay, A/M/V/XR Technologies, EBT/CBTA, UPRT, and Big Data. Led by Capt. Jacques Drappier, former Vice President of Flight Operations and Training Services for Airbus, and Chair of EATS and APATS, Halldale conducted intensive workshops with leading subject experts on each of the five topics. The workshops were followed by public webinars to present the findings.