SEA delivers flight deck simulator

SEA has delivered a new Flight Deck Training Simulator for the Royal Navy to train crew for the new HMS Queen Elizabeth aircraft carriers, the company announced on 10 December.

The company worked alongside the Royal Navy’s School of Flight Deck Operations (RNSFDO) to produce the simulator under a contract from the Ministry of Defence’s Defence Equipment and Support (DE&S).

The simulator will be used to train Flight Deck Officers (FDO’s) and Aircraft Handlers (AH) on how to safely land and operate aircraft on and off a ship’s flight deck. In addition to the Queen Elizabeth carriers, the simulator is compatible with Type 45 Destroyers, Type 23 Frigates and, in the future, Type 26 Combat Ships and MARS Tankers.

Every aspect of flight operations can be simulated by the system, including fire-fighting and engineering emergencies, aircraft refuelling, marshalling and multi-spot landings, as well as changing sea states and day and night conditions. All the current helicopters types in service are used and over 28 different serials can be set to test individuals on drills taught at Culdrose in the classroom before students are release into the fleet. 

Lt Neil Harris, training and development officer, RNSFDO, said: ‘The previous simulator was slow and increasingly fragile. We now have a far more reliable platform with greater fidelity enabling us to really push the boundaries of our training, enhance the student’s experience and, hopefully, deliver a better product out into the fleet. It’s also given us a greater flexibility and a greater capacity to create further serials to meet future requirements.’ 

The team is now looking to install newer aircraft types, including Chinook, Apache, Osprey and F35 Jets and more many training serials for students to practice on, within the next few months. 

Related Equipment in Defence Insight

V-22 Osprey

CH-47F/MH-47G Chinook

AH-64E Apache Guardian