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Procedures
Safety & Training
AS365 N3 Dauphin SIM now approved
January 12, 2012 By Carey Fredericks
Jan. 12, 2012, Bengaluru, India - The Helicopter Academy to Train by Simulation of Flying (HATSOFF), the joint venture owned equally by Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) and CAE, today announced that its simulator cockpit for the Eurocopter AS365 N3 Dauphin helicopter has been certified to Level D, the highest qualification for flight simulators, by India's Directorate General Civil Aviation (DGCA) as well as the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA).
HATSOFF also announced that its three simulator cockpits – a Bell 412, a HAL civil/conventional Dhruv, and the Eurocopter AS365 N3 Dauphin – have been certified as Level 2 (JAR)/Level 6 (FAA) flight training devices (FTDs) when used as fixed-base, non-motion simulators in the docking station installed at HATSOFF.
HATSOFF uses a CAE-built full-mission simulator "mothership" that features CAE's revolutionary roll-on/roll-off cockpit design, which enables cockpits representing various helicopter types to be used in the full-mission simulator. When one cockpit is in the full-motion, full-mission simulator, another cockpit can be connected to the fixed-based docking station and used as a flight training device.
"We are very proud of the progress we are making at HATSOFF, and achieving Level D certification for the Eurocopter Dauphin helicopter simulator at our facility is yet another example," said Wg Cdr (Retd) Chandra Datt Upadhyay Vr.C., Chief Executive Officer of HATSOFF. "HATSOFF is a first-of-its-kind helicopter simulation training centre in India, and we are excited about continuing to demonstrate how simulation-based training will prove to be one of the best approaches for improving safety, operational efficiency and mission readiness."
The cockpit for the Eurocopter AS365 N3 Dauphin, which can be utilized for training pilots flying the Dauphin N1/N2/N3 variants, is the third for the HATSOFF training centre. The first cockpit delivered to HATSOFF represented the Bell 412 helicopter and training for Bell 412 operators began in July 2010. The second cockpit delivered to HATSOFF represented the civil/conventional variant of the Dhruv and training began in May 2011. An additional cockpit for the Indian Army/Air Force glass cockpit variant of the HAL-built Dhruv is expected to be added to the HATSOFF training centre later in 2012.
The HATSOFF training centre, located near HAL's headquarters in Bengaluru, also features multimedia classrooms, computer-based training, brief/debrief facilities, a training management information system and crew accommodations. The full-mission simulator features a common motion system, vibration platform, and visual display system, along with the four separate cockpit modules that can be used in the full-mission simulator. When a cockpit is not used in the full-mission simulator, it can be used as a fixed-based FTD.
