NPA 2020-15: Adoption of new EASA FSTD Standards
NPA 2020-15: New EASA FSTD Standards
Time to leave your comments with EASA via the CRT!
Dear Aviation Professionals,
as you might already have been notified when subscribed to the EASA website is the Notice of Proposed Amendment NPA 2020-15 newly released by EASA in late 2020 and planned to become effective by end 2021.
I encourage every single one of you to read through this NPA, and also strongly encourage you to use EASA Comment Response Tool (CRT) to leave your comments.
This NPA is the basis for quite an impacting change on the regulations concerning FSTDs, from Part-FCL, Part-ORA.GEN/.FSTD as well as the CS-FSTD(A) itself. FST will help you in the process whether you built devices or you want to obtain devices or update your existing device.
If the read of 426 pages is too much for you I suggest to watch the video of TRAFICOM excellently providing a first insight in the matter.
See video here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7L3alFyKL6k&t=1183s
With the new Issue 3, these changes will be implemented for the higher fidelity devices used for type rating training and later also be relevant for lower level devices.
The changes will affect the following in brief:
- FSTD classification system change (FSTD Levels are completely changed)
- Additional FSTD Capability Signature (FCS) adopted from ICAO 9625 based on Generic, Representative and Specific FSTD Layouts for respective Training Tasks
- Additional Equipment Specification List (ESL) changed and extended from current Qualification Certificate
- A clearer statement on the dependency of FSTD fidelity and use in training with a training matrix which is directly reflected in the FCS and ESL.
It is time to Comment! Your can provide your valuable thoughts on the impacts!
Use the Comment-Response-Tool (CRT) with EASA and leave comments in the new NPA. As for us we have studied the NPA and will continue rereading it. We found a lot of points which need either clarification or have a significant influence on future manufacturing and qualification of FSTDs and their use in training.
As in our view a lot of the changes are welcomed, but as always they need to be done with caution. As the change is really a major change in our industry it is time to carefully check on the effects!
You find the CRT via this link on the EASA website:
https://hub.easa.europa.eu/crt/
Alexander Schaffler
Mr Alexander Schaffler started his aviation related career in 2007 with Diamond Aircraft Industries, where he was first taking over the FSTD production line, delivery, installation and qualification process as a Project Manager of the Business Unit Simulation. He left the company as Director Marketing and Sales and launched his own consulting company for professional flight simulation in 2010 (FTD Consulting) which later cofounded the platform Flight Simulator Trader in 2013, trading independently new and used FSTDs accompanied by sophisticated services. To this date FST has sold over 75 Simulators and taken on manifold consulting assignments for simulation organisations as well as regulatory approvals of aviation organizations (AOC, ATO, FSTD, CAMO, etc.) by introducing solutions to about 140 aviation organisations.
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