Europe’s Joint Aviation Authorities (JAA) is expecting to release its own set of standards for the first version of the International Civil Aviation Organization-sanctioned multi-crew pilot licence (MPL) on 15 November, but the International Federation of Air Line Pilots’ Associations (IFALPA) remains concerned about the implementation of the new programme.
Speaking at the recent Royal Aeronautical Society’s Flight Crew Training: Meeting Tomorrow’s Challenges conference in London, JAA licensing director Fergus Woods said the MPL is “coming to its fruition point after four years of work”. He adds that “everything should go through” on the JAA’s side on 15 November, while ICAO’s MPL standards are expected to be available on 23 November.
The MPL requires student pilots to be trained as part of a crew of two, the aim being that the student will be able to begin professional flying as an airline co-pilot. Earlier this year, IFALPA voiced concerns that the reduced training times associated with the new licence could mean that first officers lack the necessary flying skills to take over in the event of a captain becoming incapacitated.
IFALPA still has concerns over the implementation of the MPL, and notes that certain questions remain unanswered concerning some of the scientific data involved in putting together the licence. But while Woods admits that the JAA will “need to improve on version one of the MPL in the future”, he says a step-by-step approach to its implementation should act as a compromise to “those who are skeptical of the simulation approach”.
Training for the MPL will be broken down into four phases, the first of which focuses on core flying skills. This initial phase will involve “less than 140h but more than 60h” of flight time, most of which will be airborne, with up to 5h taking place on a flight and navigation procedure trainer (FNPT I).
The intermediate and advanced phases will include air traffic control (ATC) simulation training, for which Woods says the technology is available and guidance material is currently being published. “ATC simulation should be introduced at the early stage of implementation,” he says.
Future versions of the MPL will require a “fine-tuning” of the feedback process, as well as improved instructor requirements. A competency-based approach to training and testing theoretical knowledge is also on the cards for future versions. “We see the need to change to a competency-based approach but this is a big step and we couldn’t fit it into the current timescale,” says Woods.
A key feature of the MPL is that it will enable pilots to take the “right-hand seat” on an aircraft after 240h of training, notes the licensing director. He adds that one of the key aims of the licence is to “train to proficiency, rather than test to destruction”.
Source: FlightGlobal.com
