First CAAC Simulator enters into service at Hua-Ou Aviation Training Centre

New training facilities help increase Hua-Ou’s training capacity by over 25 per cent

The Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) has put into service an Airbus A320 Full Flight Simulator (FFS), ordered from Thales, at the new extension of the Hua-Ou Aviation Training Centre, a joint-venture between Airbus and the China Aviation Supplies Holding Company (CAS) in Beijing.

A ceremony was held on 24th March at the training centre to celebrate the opening of the new extension and the new simulator’s entry into service.

Raymond Lim, General Manager of Hua-Ou Aviation Training & Support Centre, and Captain Jiang Huaiyu, Director General of Flight Standards Department of CAAC, signed a cooperation agreement on the operation of the new simulator and an A320 configured Thales Formation System Trainer (TFST). The FFS and TFST are owned by CAAC and will be operated by Hua-Ou. This is the first time CAAC has purchased its own FFS. The new device will become a reference standard for the training of CAAC inspectors. Those inspectors are responsible for verifying that all A320 FFS in use throughout the Chinese aviation industry meet all regulatory standards necessary to provide pilot training at the required level.

Hua-Ou’s new extension includes four new classrooms, a structural training workshop, a new simulator bay and a new cabin trainer hall. The new facilities will host 20 per cent more pilot trainees and 33 per cent more engineering (mechanics) trainees each year, increasing the centre’s total capacity by 25 per cent.

“Safety has always been our top priority and qualified pilots and engineers are key to ensuring safety in air traffic. The Hua-Ou Aviation Training Centre has played an important role in the training of qualified pilots, engineers and crew members for China. We firmly believe that the experts of the training centre will make full use of the training facilities to contribute even more to air transportation safety,” said Li Jian, Vice Minister of CAAC.

“As a shareholder of the Hua-Ou Aviation Training Centre, CAS will increase its cooperation with Airbus to further develop the centre and to enhance its training capacity,” said Li Hai, President of CAS and Chairman of the Hua-Ou Aviation Training and Support Centre.

“We are proud that CAAC has chosen the Hua-Ou Aviation Training Centre as a base for its first simulator. It highlights their trust in our expertise and professionalism. Through this project, CAAC and Hua-Ou have set a new cooperation mode. The expansion of the training centre and the addition of new training facilities will allow us to better answer the need for training of our customers and Airbus aircraft operators in China,” said Pierre Steffen, Airbus China Senior Vice President Customer Services and Internal Operations.

The Hua-Ou Aviation Training Centre was opened in 1997. In April 2006, China Aviation Supplies Holding Company (CAS) and Airbus announced the renewal of their contract for two more decades for the Training and Support Centre.