Flight safety is the linchpin of aviation’s success, and in an ever-changing industry its importance continues to be paramount. New tools, new practices and new methodologies are going some way to improve both safety and efficiency within aviation’s digitalised, more sustainable future. We sat down with execs from across the industry to learn more.
“The first of the three big trends I see is that we are operating within an industry under change,” Paul Sandström, chief operating officer of document digitalisation specialists Web Manuals, tells us.
“On one hand, we are experiencing market consolidations caused by natural market forces, the aftermath of COVID and political uncertainty. On the other hand, the market is rapidly expanding into new segments, such as drones.”
“The next trend,” Sandström continues, “is working alongside regulatory pressure to achieve increased safety and security. Regulatory cycles tend to be longer than technology cycles, and it often operates as a ‘cat and mouse’ situation so that regulatory bodies can keep up with a VUCA [volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity] world and new technology.”
To this end, balance is imperative, and here the skill and experience to decide when the right moment for change, within a particular organisational context, is vital. For many larger players within aviation, that moment may well be different within different parts of the business.
Michaela Froelich, head of marketing and technical sales at AXIS Flight Simulation, tells us that “a big trend impacting the aviation industry is the pilot shortage, as well as staff shortages on the ground at airports, which have occurred as a result of the pandemic. Shortages are leaving airlines unable to match new flight requirements and as a result, airlines have been forced to cancel or reduce flight numbers. This is impacting the flight training industry, with several businesses looking to train pilots as quickly as possible to mitigate the current shortages.”
Related to this trend, Froelich notes, are “remote learning and hybrid training models. The COVID-19 pandemic accelerated this shift and it has become a long-term trend for our business. Typically, authorities like EASA or FAA take time to implement new regulations, but changes to operational guidelines for hybrid flight training were quick to evolve. This includes trends such as flexible training options and working with a virtual instructor to conduct flight training.”
Here, advancement in simulator technology, especially with increasingly realistic and immersive environments, means that investment in new technology and integration of new innovations is most compelling.
“Creating an almost identical flight experience for trainee pilots not only provides the highest quality of training in a safe, closely monitored environment, it also enables more confident flying and enhances flight safety when it comes to moving from simulator to inflight,” Froelich says. “Big data and competency-based training is a big opportunity for us, and allow us to manufacture tailored flight training solutions. Innovation in simulator technology, such as remote maintenance and virtual reality goggles present a huge opportunity for us to support trainees and trainers onsite, as well as cloud-based simulation that allows training on every device.”
The multiple types of virtual reality each have their benefits when it comes to improving safety, with virtual or remote instructors able to improve not just quality but also learning throughput — and, as a result, safety.
SMS digitalisation, new regulation and aviation’s sustainable future
With the industry’s supply chain such a hot topic at present, we sat down with Kevin Lewis, chief of the office of airworthiness at interiors manufacturer STG Aerospace, to understand their perspective.
“One of the most significant changes will be the International Civil Aviation Organization’s introduction of the new Safety Management System [SMS] with which all aviation organisations must comply by 2025,” Lewis tells us. “The system will add another layer of safety precaution to mitigate risks and enhance overall compliance. Organisations are not officially required to comply until 2025, though I would expect to see more companies begin the implementation phase imminently. It will require a considerable amount of work to implement SMS. However, in a lot of cases, the fundamentals will already be in place, and it will be a case of formalising new processes to align with SMS.”
Already, concurs AXIS Flight Simulation’s Michaela Froelich, “an increasing number of Safety Management Systems have switched to a digital system, which makes it easier to integrate information from modern simulator programmes. For example, automated maintenance checks can be transferred into the SMS to provide users with a thorough overview of the simulator’s status.”
Within this context, the industry will be adapting to new waves of performance-based regulation. The transition away from regulatory prescriptivism towards demonstrated compliance will be complex, but will likely reap benefits — both in safety and in design.
“Designers will of course always maintain a high level of safety as they have to meet safety regulations, but they have the ability to inject an element of creativity into their designs,” Lewis says, noting especially that “new technologies, materials and manufacturing techniques are high on the agenda in the aviation industry. Composite materials are gaining popularity in aerospace engineering as they are lighter than conventional materials and weight reduction can improve engine performance and lower emissions. Carbon fibre has been around for a long time, but it hasn’t been used extensively in recent years due to its lack of consistency — I would expect more organisations to consider this material in 2024 as they strive for a greener future.”
A safe future will always be primary within aviation, but it is becoming increasingly clear that an environmentally unsustainable industry will be one that has little to no future at all.
Here, AXIS’ Froelich says, even within training and simulation, “We’re seeing a trend towards more sustainable simulators and flight training, incorporating more environmentally conscious practices that align with the efforts to reduce the carbon footprint of aviation — for example, manufacturing energy efficient simulators to minimise consumption or using refurbished materials like old nose sections of scrapped aircraft.”
STG’s Lewis echoes this view, noting that “the green revolution for air transportation and net zero is key and will likely be a priority in 2024 and beyond.”
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