L-3 Link Achieves World’s First Boeing 787-8 Full Flight Simulator Level D Certifications

L-3 Link Simulation & Training (L-3 Link) announced today that its Crawley, U.K.-based operation has concurrently received Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) Level D certifications on two Boeing 787-8 Full Flight Simulators (FFS) installed at the Boeing Flight Services Miami, Fla. campus. These are the first Boeing 787-8 FFS to receive Level D certifications from a national aviation authority.

“We are proud to have the first 787 Full Flight Simulators qualified in the world at our Miami campus,” said Len Weber, director of operations for Boeing Flight Services. “This qualification allows Boeing to provide our customers the highest level of training fidelity for safe operations of our newest airplanes.”

“Achieving parallel Level D certifications from both the FAA and EASA for these 787-8 Full Flight Simulators was due to an exceptional level of effort and coordination between the Boeing and L-3 teams to ensure that all commitments were met,” said Mark Gasson, L-3 Link UK vice president. “This milestone achievement will enable pilots undergoing instruction on the 787-8 training suite – which includes L-3 Link UK-built FFS, a Flight Training Device (FTD) and Desktop Trainer (DTT) – to experience a seamless transfer of knowledge as they progress through Boeing’s training syllabus.”

On the two 787-8 FFS, Boeing instructors can change simulator software loads to replicate how the aircraft operates when outfitted with Rolls-Royce Trent 1000 or General Electric GEnx engines. The FTD has a fully functional avionics capability, including an Electronic Flight Bag (EFB) and Heads-Up Display (HUD), which enables all normal and non-normal procedures to be accomplished. L-3 Link has also provided two briefing and debriefing stations per training device to improve training delivery efficiency and optimize use of the training suite.

L-3 Link UK is scheduled to complete additional Level D certifications on three 787 FFS during 2013. The 787 FFS are already installed at Boeing Flight Services’ London Gatwick and Singapore campuses, in addition to Qatar Airways’ integrated training center in Doha.