In my present job I teach on the AW139 simulator. Mostly type ratings so far but these are early days and it wont be long before we get a lot more recurrent training candidates coming through. The spectrum of students I have seen so far range from the ridiculous to the sublime and they come from many different countries, backgrounds and operations.
There is a common denominator and that is that those that do not do procedural IFR ops as part of their daily routine find achieving the required standard very challenging. I think it would be fair to say that to equip the aircraft is one thing but to provide the pilot with an appropriate rating is another. Both have cost implications but the latter is an ongoing penalty that is a bit like an iceberg. The rating and the 6 monthly check-ride are just the tip, the main (hidden) expense is in realising that achieving and MAINTAINING a decent standard of skill requires ADDITIONAL recurrent training.
I detect a growing awareness in some quarters that this is the way to go but those most reluctant to sign up to 'prevention is better than cure' seem to be those areas dominated by FAA standards and philosophies.
I have stood by for many years and put up with the AMERICA IS BEST school of thought and judged each situation on its merits but I increasingly feel the need to cry out to those in the US to get your collective heads out of your collective a***es, raise your eyes to see what others in the industry are doing and give the matter a bit of thought. We need the momentum you can generate around the world if we are to achieve an 80% reduction in accidents.
This means that when setting the operating standards you must POLICE THEM and you must TRAIN FOR THEM .......... REALISTICALLY .......... WITH A COMPETENCE MANAGEMENT PROCESS INCLUDED.
There are many around the world that take their lead from the US and the FAA and it must live up to these responsibilities. There are some promising signs ..... please may it continue.
G
