Contemporary flight training methods focus more on technologies and advancements in visual systems, rather than muscle training, according to Ian Bell, vice president and general manager at CAE Middle East and Asia-Pacific.
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"I think when I was a young pilot, and it's more years ago than I can remember, the training aids were either the live aeroplane or very rudimentary ground-based training equipment," Bell told Defence Connect. "It was nothing more really than practising emergencies and different procedures."
Today, he explained, the focus is no longer on the muscle training but on using advanced visual systems, which allow the company to incorporate brain training.
"So training the young kids to understand the requirements of integration and interoperability, and that's really the biggest step forward, I think, over the last decade or so," he said.
Meanwhile, CAE director of marketing communications Chris Stellwag cast simulation as a great learning environment, enabling students to practice and rehearse over and over again.
"You do that before you're actually using operational assets, or before you're in harm’s way," he said. "It's a great environment for repetition and teaching the kind of skills [and] co-ordination you're going to need when you go to combat."