Steve Daniels, Test Pilot Tutor, ETPS Boscombe Down
As the Empire Test Pilots’ School – based at MOD Boscombe Down in Wiltshire, and run by QinetiQ – celebrates its 70th anniversary this year, recent blogs have looked at the history of the school and at some of its previous ‘high fliers’. In this blog, we move into the present, with a look at how we lead the way in implementing new aviation safety standards.
ETPS recently worked closely with the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) to define new standards and implement new regulatory structures. The training, qualification and licensing of all flight test aircrew operating within the European Union must now comply. Our courses have been redesigned to ensure that graduates meet both current and future requirements, whether civil or military.
EASA has proposed a specific syllabus for civil-approved and licensed test pilots and flight test engineers conducting experimental and development test flying. We have significantly developed all ETPS long courses to ensure full compliance with the new European regulations, whilst at the same time continuing to meet the needs of our military and non-European civil customers.
By making these changes we have ensured that successful graduates of the ETPS six-month and 12-month courses will meet both current and future military and civil requirements, with the courses focused on specific needs through tailored syllabus content.
For more information on our work with EASA accreditation, email me. You can also find out more about EASA at: http://www.easa.europa.eu/home.php