How Airbus is training the current and next generation of helicopter pilots and technicians

In addition to providing the most advanced solutions to civil, parapublic and military operators, Airbus has placed a strong focus on making sure that the new generation of pilots and mechanics can benefit from the highest level of knowledge and experience in their missions. This commitment was recently illustrated by the celebration of 250,000 trainees - an achievement that reflects decades of dedication to customer satisfaction, safety and excellence in training.

Mission-ready crews

From its inception, the goal of the Airbus Helicopters Training Academy has been to provide unparalleled support to customers - always relying on excellence and innovation to do so. With 20 training academies across the globe, over 7,000 helicopter pilots and technicians were trained in 2024, logging in some 3,000 helicopter flight hours per year, Airbus customers, operators and experts have built a true worldwide community. Dylon Cross, pilot for PHI Australia, said: “The facilities and training here provided by Airbus allowed us at PHI to improve our safety standards, efficiency and also quality of service to our customers.”

Tailored solutions

With operators flying essential missions every day, ranging from emergency medical services and disaster relief to law enforcement, firefighting and combat search and rescue, the diversity of expertise and areas of training available at Airbus is a major asset, ranging from initial type rating to refresher courses for pilots, to structure or mission equipment repair for mechanics. Brazilian parapublic operator Grupamento Tático Aéreo Pernambuco, with maintenance technician B Oliveira commented: “The primary mission of GTA Pernambuco is focused on public safety and rescue operations. The relationship between GTA Pernambuco and Airbus is excellent, focusing on continuous training and knowledge exchange and providing training that is innovative, complete and intense at the same time.” 

As operators’ mission requirements are ever-evolving, Airbus continues to expand the impact of its training services and network to improve customer satisfaction across the board. To strengthen this strong foundation, the Airbus Helicopters Training Academy network has placed special emphasis on providing a wide range of tools and training materials to trainees. Through this, the training team is able to create a personalised training programme that matches each customer’s daily mission requirements, alternating between flight, maintenance, simulator, blended courses that mix in-person and virtual learning, and full online solutions - such as the technician recurrent training offer. 

Simulating flight conditions to perfection

The integration of simulator courses also has a significant impact on the training of crew members, as an important tool to recreate regular and emergency operational conditions in a safe environment. All in all, Airbus Helicopters’ Training Academy network logs in a yearly 18,000 helicopter simulator hours per year, showcasing the success and enthusiasm around this type of session, with simulators available at Airbus Helicopters’ training facilities around the globe, including in the United States, Brazil or Germany. Cross from PHI added: “Within the full-flight simulator environment, Airbus has allowed us to carry out our mission as detailed to us in our operations in North Western Australia and around the Asia Pacific region to a variety of rigs as we operate in the energy sector.”

Always looking for new ways to improve training accessibility and safety, Airbus and Loft Dynamics partnered in 2021 to develop the world’s first H125 virtual reality simulator, which was qualified by EASA in 2022. New functionalities have been added to the H125 simulator and should be available for training activities in 2025. It was also recently installed at Airbus’ South Africa Training Academy. In 2022, both companies partnered again to co-develop a second virtual reality simulator - this time for the H145, which should enter into service later this year.

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