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The new Multi-crew Pilot's License (MPL) - what’s it all about?
Gallus Bammert is a ground instructor for Swiss AviationTraining Ltd. in Zurich, and is a qualified representative of both JAA and ICAO. In the following question-and-answer session, Bammert explains what the new Multi-crew Pilot’s License (MPL) is, the reasoning behind it, and comments on its effect.
What exactly is meant by Multi-crew Pilot’s License?
The MPL will be a new pilot’s licence that will be issued to ab-initio students after completion of a pilot training course in a multi-crew cockpit. According to the ICAO, it will be possible to train pilots for an MPL from the year 2007.
Where are the provisions for the MPL training defined?
As with other pilot’s licences, the MPL requirements are listed in a document called “Personnel Licensing” which is published by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), whose membership includes every country on earth except the Vatican.
What prompted the ICAO to develop the MPL training?
In today’s courses a lot of time is devoted to pilot-in-command training in a single-pilot cockpit, for which the demand is small, and getting smaller. Since most students are planning anyway to work in a multi-crew cockpit, the MPL will offer them direct access to this kind of work.
Will current training be replaced or limited by the MPL?
No. But there might well be some changes in 2007, regardless of the MPL, because all licence requirements and authorizations will also be revised. Current regulations date all the way back to1948, and fundamental changes have taken place in aviation since then.
If the holder of an MPL is trained exclusively for multi-crew cockpits, does this mean that he or she will not be allowed to work in a single-pilot cockpit?
No, but further training will be required in order to qualify for other licences.
Does the MPL replace another licence?
No. It is a completely new kind of training, and a licence in its own right.
What are the advantages of the MPL?
The decisive advantage is the fact that MPL students are better prepared for their real-life tasks. Another advantage is that the MPL pilot-to-be will have all the qualifications – Licence and Type Rating – needed to be a co-pilot. And incidentally, because they spend more hours on the simulator than in the aircraft, students waste less time waiting for aircraft availability.
Are there any disadvantages of the MPL?
Not really, though at first glance, the implied confinement to a multi-crew cockpit seems like a restriction. But it is really more of a specialization – one that more accurately reflects the reality of today’s and tomorrow’s commercial aviation world.