Andrew Doyle/FRANKFURT
The introduction of new European regulations and the growing power of simulation technology were the hot topics at the Flight International-sponsored Aviation Maintenance Training Conference held on 15-16 February
As pressure increases on aircraft maintenance firms to step up the quality of their work at less cost and in shorter turnaround times, major industry players are looking to change the way that the maintenance training industry operates. And they must do so as new European regulations governing training standards take hold.
But because qualifying their maintainers is an investment in the future, each maintenance organisation has the chance to analyse and decide today, on the basis of its individual requirements, how it can benefit from these new regulations, says Jörn Clausen, senior area manager for marketing and customer services for Lufthansa Technical Training (LTT).
LTT is among those welcoming the challenges of the present and future air transport industry as an unprecedented opportunity for growth. A subsidiary of Lufthansa Technik, in February LTT became the first company to receive Joint Airworthiness Requirements (JAR)-147 approval. JAR-147, introduced in June last year, lays down the standards for JAR-145-approved maintenance organisations in Europe to train certifying staff in accordance with JAR-66 knowledge requirements.
The new regulations are expected to have a considerable impact on personnel costs, both in Europe and the USA, where the equivalent FAR Parts 66 and 147 are still under discussion but likely to be implemented soon.
LTT has calculated that it takes approximately 2,398 hours, or 424 days, to teach the JAR-66 syllabus from scratch. This comprises 1,027 hours of theory (based on five hours per day), 120 hours of computer-based training (CBT) - three per day - and 1,251 hours of practical work (seven). Clausen says only three hours per day of CBT is feasible because "the learning density is very high and we have noticed that trainees are quite exhausted after three hours' intensive use of such a system.''
Staff with experience and existing qualifications are given credits and undertake less training where applicable. LTT has modularised the basic knowledge subjects in JAR-66 into 60 short training courses so that trainees can complete only the subjects they require on a flexible basis.
Computer Based Training
The use of CBT has enabled LTT to considerably reduce the length of many courses, with the approval of the LBA, the German civil aviation authority. Further savings are possible where, for example, existing staff are undergoing differences training and can undertake CBT courses when it suits their individual circumstances. The company also provides telephone, fax and email facilities to support students during office hours.
"There is a very much higher learning density but we cannot incorporate all the chapters which have to be taught - for example, human factors - but all the others, such as aerodynamics, can be compressed using CBT,'' says Clausen.
Tri-national Scandinavian flag-carrier SAS, meanwhile, was disappointed with the lack of cost savings it achieved with CBT in the past but has recently undertaken a new project with Germany-based Vega Information Technology. It is still too early to gauge any cost savings but based on student feedback, SAS considers this latest project to be a success. "We had not gained so much in the past,'' admits SAS Maintenance Training chief instructor Bjorn Mjaland.
The airline set up an equipment emulation project covering maintenance training for its Boeing MD-80 fleet in conjunction with Vega. Its aims were to cut overall course costs by 20%, to reduce the level of night training required, to reduce the level of risk associated with training mechanics on real aircraft and and bring down simulator costs.
Mjaland says the introduction of Vega's Assist Learning Concept (ALC) led to a shift to cognitive learning among the students - instead of being told how to perform a maintenance task, they began their learning by doing it themselves. The ALC is capable of emulating the appearance and function of the aircraft's systems using desktop PCs, and allows specific faults to be inserted for investigation by the student.
SAS Maintenance Training has one ALC classroom, in Oslo, that caters for 14 students, but after receiving highly positive feedback from trainees, the company has just furnished its training centres in Copenhagen and Stockholm with similar equipment.
Vega IT training systems manager Martin Frühauf says equipment emulation is particularly advantageous where real hardware is not available, is too expensive to be used for training, is sensitive to damage or is not configurable for that purpose.
For SAS, the ALC software emulates the MD-80s navigation, electrical, air conditioning, fire protection, fuel, auxiliary power, communication, auto-flight, landing gear and instrument systems. Development of the MD-80 maintenance training system was part funded by the European Commission under the Espirit research and development programme.
Another carrier working with Vega on CBT systems is the Dutch flag-carrier KLM. The two companies launched a collaborative project with the Dutch Aviation Training College (NLC) to develop a generic (ie, not based on a specific airliner type) PC-based aircraft systems concepts (ASC) trainer to assist the college in meeting the requirements of JAR-66.
Jerry Seager, project manager at the Dutch arm of Vega IT, believes that JAR-66 is triggering interesting CBT/multimedia developments.
Generic Training
Three key factors are driving the Amsterdam-based airline's interest in CBT, says KLM project manager Jan Bruins. First, the improving reliability of modern aircraft can result in maintenance technician inexperience because some failures are so rare. In addition, mechanics are under pressure to shorten turnaround times, and reduce occurrences of no-fault-found component removals.
The ASC tries to teach the systems concepts for the aircraft at a generic level - there is no type-specific training, says Bruins. "We intend to be able to provide implementation support, trained instructors, a help desk, an updating service and continuing compliance with JAR-66,'' he adds. The ASC will be officially launched at the NLC on 4 March.
Aircraft manufacturer Airbus Industrie, meanwhile, is also embracing CBT in partnership with training systems provider Wicat of the USA. The two organisations have worked together with Aerospatiale and Faros of France to develop the Airbus A320 CMOS cockpit maintenance trainer on a PC platform.
A Wicat spokesperson says: "We believe this approach provides realism at a cost not previously imaginable. This is the first time that third-generation PC-based simulation has been applied first to maintenance training,'' referring to the fact that such technology usually finds its first application in flight crew training devices. Third-generation denotes PC simulators that use re-hosted or re-targeted software code from a full-flight simulator or the aircraft itself.
Airbus hopes that adoption of the CMOS trainer by A320 family operators will achieve three main objectives: increased dispatch reliability; a reduction in no-fault-found removals; and a reduced requirement for expensive, dedicated maintenance training simulators (MTS) based on real aircraft. CMOS takes the place of the MTS, according to Wicat.
Enter the Internet
Benefits in terms of training quality include increased hands-on practice, using a low-cost, high-fidelity platform. There are, however, limitations, admits Michael Plante, Wicat's vice-president of marketing. These include the fact that training with CMOS is limited to maintenance procedures performed in the cockpit, plus there are a limited number of trouble-shooting exercises and there is no flight simulator element. Nevertheless, the product can help significantly reduce overall training costs and deliver superior training through discovery learning, says Plante.
In the USA, meanwhile, Delta Air Lines is redefining its approach to maintenance training and has launched a major project to study the feasibility of delivering training over the internet. The airline's assessment of its future maintenance training requirements revolves around five main areas: culture, regulation, demographics, public perception and legislation.
Bruce Smith, Delta's training director, says mechanics' effectiveness suffered in the past because training emphasised how to work on aircraft, not how the aircraft works. He adds: "We are shifting from the shake-tree mechanic to a more diagnostic, trouble-shooting approach."
Cultural Factors
"Perhaps the biggest influence we are facing is diversity. We have cultural and language factors that we have to deal with in our training.'' He explains, for example, that Asian employees tend to learn more quickly working by themselves than in a competitive teamwork scenario.
Smith believes that a major benefit of technology is that it can put information at mechanics' fingertips through easy-to-use retrieval systems, as aircraft become ever more complex. He says that the human brain can no longer be the storage area; it has to become the processor of information.
Delta plans to use the Internet as its primary training delivery system, providing a virtual classroom, simulated tasks and on-the-job training, just-in-time (or on-demand) training, adaptive learning/self-help and contract training for third-party customers.
"We can't stand still. The technology is evolving at too rapid a rate,'' says Smith. "We are being very aggressive in this particular area -we have signed a contract agreement with a company in Atlanta which will set up Internet delivery for training. We are going to be able to use any application of the Internet where we can have security to provide training."
Delta predicts that delivering CBT training via the Internet will save the airline approximately $1.5 million annually. By the end of June, around 300 hours of CBT training will be available in this way. A further $2.5 million per year is expected to be generated through contract sales to outside customers.
For the longer term, Delta is eyeing a comprehensive on-line adaptive learning system. "During the next ten years, that's really where we'd like to go,'' says Smith.
Gaining more attention since the new JARs were introduced in Europe is the need for improved reliability engineering training to comply with operational requirements (JAR Ops). JAR Ops dictates that airline operators (or their maintenance providers) must continuously review and update their condition-based maintenance programmes and aircraft maintenance schedules (AMS).
The objectives of a reliability programme are to recognise the need for corrective action before a failure occurs, establish what action is required, and determine the effectiveness of that action.
When employed effectively, reliability engineering can provide airlines with increased flexibility, argues Nick Schulkins, BMT Reliability Consultants manager, maintenance and logistic engineering.
Grading the Students
JAR Ops gives the operator - or his third party maintenance provider - the ability to change his aircraft maintenance schedule, but he has to justify what he does, says Schulkins. Effective reliability trend monitoring can now be carried out using desktop PCs and Microsoft Excel spreadsheet software using a range of data sources, he says, provided that mechanics receive suitable training.
The rapidly advancing technology that is being employed in training devices has, meanwhile, forced companies such as LTT to take a fresh look at student evaluation.
According to LTT quality manager Hans Mayer, the key questions are: how does a customer know it has given its training request to the right know-how provider?; how does a training organisation know the student has achieved the requested performance level?; and how does the training organisation get the necessary information to continuously improve the programme for the customer?
When you look at these three questions there is no way to bypass evaluation, says Mayer. To address this, LTT tests each student daily as part of what it calls course progress monitoring (CPM). Each assessment is based on the lectures of the previous day.
According to Mayer, CPM enables continuous verification of the training programme, and an on-the-spot reaction if it becomes clear that the process needs to be revised. Motivation is part of this feedback, and it also improves teamwork, says Mayer. Students get daily feedback and an indication of how they have performed in each chapter.
An assessment of handling competence (AHC), meanwhile, is carried out every day during the second half of practical training. Handling competence is defined as an individual's ability to complete a task to a certain quality level within a set time frame.
"Today we know that our two evaluation methods, CPM and AHC, enable us to control the training quality for the benefit of our customers and ourselves,'' says Mayer. "We get a proved indication whether the training has taken place in a way which is needed to achieve the requested performance level."
While software's role in training programmes for maintenance personnel is growing, it is also becoming crucial to the administrative systems required to support the new JAR regulations.
JAR-145-approved maintenance organisations must maintain records of all certifying staff, including the scope of their authorisations. Under JAR-147 training requirements, maintenance organisations must maintain records of instructors and examiners, including their qualifications, experience and training history.
Mint Media Interactive managing director Christian Hollman says: "For these reasons a system to record the qualification and training data for personnel is needed." Mint has designed its Windows-based Resourcer software product in co-operation with several maintenance training organisations to target this market. SAS Maintenance Training uses this programme with additional modules to automatically schedule their training courses, says Hollman. This can be achieved because the exact qualifications of all employed instructors have been entered into the systems database.
Lufthansa Technik also plans to use the software to allocate technicians on work away from its base stations, by using the system to identify which staff have the appropriate qualifications for each job.
The Hierarchical Structure of the JARsJAR-Ops 1
Required by an operator whose principle place of business is in a JAA member state. The operator must prove it can guarantee the airworthiness of the aircraft it operates.
JAR-145
Lays down standards for maintenance organisations. As well as meeting organisational and technical requirements, the company must have sufficient qualified personnel permitted to issue an aircraft Certificate of Release to Service.
JAR-66
Describes knowledge requirements for certifying staff, and is designed to ensure staff of all JAR-145 organisations in Europe are qualified to the same standards.
JAR-147
Specifies the training standards that must be followed in order to obtainJAR-66 approval.
Human factors The concept of human factors and their impact on aviation safety has until relatively recently been primarily associated with problems on the flightdeck.
Now that human factors are accepted as being critical to the safety of aviation maintenance, specific training programmes have been introduced by the industry. Such training has also been mandated by the Joint Airworthiness Authority and the Federal Aviation Authority.
Dr Sam Cromie, research fellow at Trinity College, Dublin, says such training could possibly deliver significant improvements in safety, but is likely to have only short-term effects if the industry fails to adopt a comprehensive and sustained approach. Trinity College is leading four research projects into human factors in aviation ground handling and maintenance, backed by European Union funding.
Dr Cromie has looked in detail at how to integrate human factors with technical training. He says that the initial challenge of human factors is to change the existing culture of the company from one which is primarily technically oriented to one which is equally competent at managing the human aspects of the operation.
Dr Cromie believes that the integration of such training comprises two main aspects. The first is the incorporation of human factors material into the instructional content of technical classes. This could include, for example, work on setting up an error reporting system, and on highlighting human factors issues that arise during training.
The second aspect is what Dr Cromie calls using human factors to inform the instructional context. He explains: "Much learning about professional culture derives from observing role models (such as instructors and supervisors) and from practical experience in the workplace."
"If the messages from these sources contradict the explicit content of the training, that content will be wasted,'' he adds "Technicians will learn to do what they see done, not what is supposed to be done."
European academy for aviation safety (EAAS)With the harmonisation of air safety regulations well underway in Europe, the EAAS has been set up to pool the expertise of a range of institutions and provide training for senior officials, such as airworthiness inspectors at national aviation authorities.
A principal aim of the new body is to provide training services for non-European countries that wish to adopt European air safety standards, acting as a single point of contact.
EAAS president Jurgen Jurisch says the academy's services could be applicable where, for example, a country has lost its Category 1 rating because of a lack of safety oversight. The EAAS will give access to the best European experts working together to share their experience, says Jurisch.
The idea is that a customer approaches the EAAS with a training request. The EAAS then enlists members of the association to provide that training, although where needed it becomes involved in co-ordinating the programme. A contract is signed between the customer and the EAAS or directly with the training provider, depending on which makes most sense.
The types of training available encompass airworthiness and flight operations inspection and JAR awareness courses, through to specialised areas such as maintenance, air accident investigation and human factors.
The EAAS was formally registered as a non profit-making French association, based in Toulouse, in March last year with 13 members from six European countries. These are: ATR; Air France, Airbus Industrie; Airco/IFSA (France); British Aerospace Training Services; Cranfield University (UK); Lufthansa (Germany) ; DGAC (France); ENAC (France); Euresas; Nordic Aviation Resources (Norway); Registro Aeronautico Italiano-ENAC (Italy) and SENASA (Spain).
Honorary/advisory members include: the European Association of Aerospace Industries; Association of European Airlines; European Society of Air Safety Investigators; Eurocontrol; and the Joint Aviation Authorities.
The organisation is embarking on a two-year development phase and aims to reach full market penetration by 2001.
Maintenance training for the military It is not only civil operators that are adapting to new technology - the armed forces are also re-evaluating their approach to maintenance training as defence budgets continue to shrink. They are increasingly opting for long-term turnkey support contracts supported by private finance.
GKN Westland Helicopters customer training operations manager Bill Powell says that the new approach is necessary to cater for the increasing sophistication of military customers, who are keen to embrace emerging technologies. They are at the same time facing severe cost contraints, but place demanding support requirements on manufacturers and insist on long-term supplier commitment to product support.
Westland supplies training services for the UK armed forces, and is supporting the introduction of the Boeing/Westland WAH-64 Apache into service with the army.
The Apache introduces many new technologies for the army and that challenge needs to be met, says Powell. The army rejected initial Apache training proposals as not being affordable and as a result Westland came up with plans for a multi-million pound investment in new training facilities.
The UK company formed Aviation Training International in partnership with Boeing, which will supply the army with Apache training services under a 30-year contract. As part of the programme, four new schools have been constructed in the UK, each equipped with the latest training equipment. This includes part-task trainers (representative sections of the aircraft for students to work on), as well as multimedia PC-based applications.
"While we embrace the new technology, we haven't thrown away the old technology. We don't go for electronic media if we don't need to,'' says Powell.
Source: Flight International
