WORLD-FIRST CERTIFICATION ALIGNS TRAINING WITH CURRENT A320NEO OPERATIONS

BAA Training France has become the first aviation training centre worldwide to operate an Airbus A320 Full Flight Simulator (FFS) certified to the new Airbus Standard 2.2.1 and declared Ready for Training (RFT). The simulator is owned by Transavia France, the Air France-KLM Group low-cost carrier, and is operated and maintained by BAA Training at its facility in France. It is now available for type rating and recurrency training for airlines and operators globally.

The certification is significant in the context of the ongoing global A320neo fleet expansion. As airlines accelerate the introduction of newer A320neo aircraft, maintaining the alignment between training simulator standards and current aircraft configurations becomes increasingly important for pilot readiness, operational consistency and regulatory safety compliance. The new Airbus Standard 2.2.1 ensures continued correspondence with the most recent A320neo aircraft developments, enabling pilots to train in an environment that accurately reflects the conditions they will encounter on the flight deck of the latest-delivered aircraft.

NEW CAPABILITIES IN THE 2.2.1 STANDARD

The Airbus Standard 2.2.1 certification introduces several advanced capabilities relative to predecessor standards. These include the Air Traffic Services Unit with Future Air Navigation System C standard (ATSU FANS-C), supporting datalink communication capabilities required for operation in certain oceanic and reduced vertical separation airspaces; an updated digital Radio Management Panel (RMP); improved Enhanced Ground Proximity Warning System (EGPWS) functionality; and further enhancements contributing to improved safety margins and reduced pilot workload management during normal and abnormal procedures. The incorporation of these updates in the simulator means type rating and recurrency training conducted on the device can cover the full envelope of systems and procedures that pilots will use in line operations on the latest aircraft.

BAA TRAINING NETWORK AND BROADER CAPABILITY

Vytautas Ledakas, Chief Simulator Training Officer at BAA Training, said the certification reflected the company’s commitment to delivering the most advanced and up-to-date training solutions for airline partners, and that by operating and maintaining the simulator the company ensured pilots were trained in an environment that mirrored real-world operations at the highest level of training quality and reliability. The certification brings the total number of certified Full Flight Simulators across BAA Training’s global network to 17. BAA Training operates simulator centres in Spain, France, Lithuania and Vietnam, along with a global sales representative office in Dubai and two consultancy centres in India. BAA Training France is the largest centre within the network and with this certification offers comprehensive training for the Airbus A320neo, Boeing 737NG and Boeing 747-400, including dry and wet lease solutions and cabin crew training facilities. BAA Training is part of Avia Solutions Group, the world’s largest ACMI provider by fleet, with approximately 11,000 aviation professionals operating across 68 countries.