Advanced Flight Test Training
Advanced Flight Test Training
Calspan has been at the forefront of aircraft Flying Qualities (FQ), Pilot-Induced Oscillation (PIO), and Upset Recovery Training (URT) research and instruction in variable stability aircraft for decades. We operated the USAF NT-33 T-Bird and C-131H Total In-Flight Simulator (TIFS) variable stability aircraft and continue to operate the X-62A Variable Stability In-flight Simulator Test Aircraft (VISTA). Today, commercial instruction is conducted in Calspan's variable stability Learjets.
Calspan supports aerospace industry innovators by teaming with seven of the eight SETP-recognized test pilot schools to provide world-class airborne instruction. We have been teaching at the U.S. Air Force and Naval Test Pilot Schools for more than half a century. Additionally, we offer short courses taught at our state-of-the-art flight test facility located at the Niagara Falls, NY, International Airport (KIAG).
Flying Qualities Training
Calspan uses variable stability aircraft to conduct Flying Qualities (FQ) research and flight test training.
PIO Training
Calspan is the only commercial provider in the world for airborne Pilot Induced Oscillations (PIO) training.
Upset Recovery Training
Calspan provides the most compelling URT in an aircraft programmed to represent and fly like a larger commercial aircraft.
Flying Qualities Training
Topics covered in our Flying Qualities (FQ) instruction include:
- Longitudinal Stability and Control
- Lateral-Directional Stability and Control
- Advanced Flight Control Systems and Higher Order Flight Control Systems
- Sidestick Control and Evaluation
- Handling Qualities During Tracking (HQDT)
- Evaluation tools including Cooper-Harper Rating Scale
- Pilot-Induced Oscillation (PIO)
PIO Training
The Calspan Pilot-Induced Oscillation (PIO) course begins with classroom academics and culminates with two flights in our Learjet in-flight-simulator. One flight is up-and-away, while the second focuses on PIO-prone aircraft during approach to landing.
Course objectives include:
- Understanding the PIO phenomenon
- Important issues associated with Pilot-Induced Oscillation that influence flight test tasks/techniques
- Discussion of flight test tasks/techniques that have proven useful to flush out PIO susceptibility
- Tools for test pilots to communicate their evaluations
- Hands-on demonstration in VSS Learjet
- Variety of Pilot Induced Oscillation sources
- Flight test tasks
- Understanding historical PIO incidents
Upset Recovery Training
This two-day course trains pilots to understand, anticipate and be prepared for situations in which the aircraft's attitude is suddenly upset, resulting in potential loss of control. Utilizing Calspan's Learjet in-flight simulators, pilots are exposed to actual loss of control scenarios in a real-world situation, actually flying an aircraft rather than a ground simulator.
Classroom Instruction
- Aerodynamic Fundamentals
- Causes of upsets
- Recovery techniques
Airborne Training
- Provides full flight environment
- Replicates handling characteristics
- Can safely re-create upsets and failure modes
Instruction in:
- Failure diagnoses
- Advanced maneuvering
- Recovery techniques
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