A comprehensive report on flight training has recommended changes to instruction methods in Australia, which have the potential to improve the quality of pilots produced across the country.
The report, circulated through the industry last month, came after Adrianne Fleming OAM visited flight training organisations (FTO) in several countries as part of a Winston Churchill Memorial Trust Fellowship granted to research the systems, technologies, techniques and methods used in training.
The final report makes 41 recommendations covering many aspects of flight training, highlighting several areas for improving flight training in Australia, including:
- strengthening instructor pathways and standardisation practices
- embedding decision-making and reflective techniques earlier in training
- formalising the use of visualisation
- integrating simulation and VR/AR more strategically
- enhancing collaboration and feedback across the broader training pipeline.
In researching the report, Fleming visited FTOs and universities in USA, UK, Spain and the United Arab Emirates, with a side trip to the Asia-Pacific Aviation Training Symposium (APATS) in Singapore.
These visits provided Fleming with opportunities to observe a wide spectrum of training environments, from universities and airline academies to integrated civilian schools and military institutions leading to an understanding of how different organisations prepare students for safe and confident flight.
"What stood out most was the influence of training culture," Fleming says. "Regardless of technology or syllabus design, it was the attitudes, expectations, and values held by instructors, leaders, and students that shaped the effectiveness of each program.
"The strongest organisations cultivated learning environments where safety, reflection, professionalism, and continuous improvement were woven into everyday practice. This reinforced a broader lesson: systems and technologies are vital, but it is people and the culture they uphold that ultimately determine training outcomes."
The report also places emphasis on the role of instructors and their part in turning out quality pilots.
"Flight instructors are the guardians of the 'first taught, best taught' principles in pilot training," Fleming states. "This point is often overlooked when assessing the value of the flight instructor. What we teach first shapes a pilot forever; our responsibility is to make those first lessons count. "
Fleming believes some of the processes, systems and techniques she saw in practice during the study tour could produce an improved flight training industry in Australia.
"Australia is well positioned to benefit from the international practices observed throughout this Fellowship," she says.
"Strengthening instructor preparation, using data and simulation more deliberately, integrating non-technical skills and cognitive tools earlier, and embedding wellbeing into organisational systems all offer pathways to uplift the quality and consistency of pilot training nationally.
"As the aviation industry continues to evolve, the ability of training organisations to adapt to new technologies, regulatory changes, and student needs, will be fundamental to sustaining a safe and capable pilot pipeline."
Fleming also noted that students who soloed later in the training syllabus tended to have less hour over-runs in their training program, and that electric aircraft used in Barcelona were good for only two circuits and as such did not represent a practical training solution.
The report has been circulated to several industry bodies including the Regional Aviation Association of Australia, Australian Women Pilots’ Association, Royal Aeronautical Society, General Aviation Advisory Network, Aviation Safety Advisory Panel, Australian Federation of Air Pilots and SafeSkies.
Copies of the report can be downloaded from the Winston Churchill Trust website https://www.churchilltrust.com.au/fellow/adrianne-fleming-vic-2024/
Key Recommendations
- introduce elements of front-loaded theory
- position computer-based training as a complementary tool
- develop and formalise mentoring models
- pair instructors for shared responsibility of a student cohort
- encourage collaboration between industry and FTOs to strengthen instructor development
- develop voluntary alumni tracking systems and integrate insights into improvement processes
- establish structured forums between FTOs and employers
- strengthen competency-based training and assessment (CBTA) across several areas
- establish a national forum to share safety information between FTOs
- embed student well-being into the formal training process
- train instructors to recognise the signs of stress, anxiety and other personal challenges
- integrate virtual reality and augmented reality systems earlier in the training cycle
- formalise chair flying and visualisation techniques
- explore introducing UPRT to ab initio training.
- Steve Hitchen