To help helicopter operators meet new EASA requirements and regulations concerning maintenance check flight (MCF) operations in 2019, training service provider Coptersafety will be offering a two-day MFC course. The first will take place at its training facility next to Helsinki airport, Finland, in January and will consist of a ground course and simulator training in a full-flight (level D) simulator, tailored for AW139 and H145 helicopter type surroundings.

The course is especially designed for current and future MCF pilots at helicopter operators operating in EASA member states in Europe, and also for technicians at helicopter maintenance service providers in the same geographic area. Operators can send one technician free of charge to the same course per each attending pilot.

CEO Mikko Dahlman says: “The rationale for EASA to establish requirements for maintenance check flights is that the lack of specific regulations on the conduct of these flights has contributed to accidents or serious incidents in the past. For us, its upcoming MCF standards are just a starting point to look into the operations of a safe and secure maintenance check flight. Our operator customers do not want to take the easy way out, so why would we?”

The course will be designed and instructed by head of training and development Mikko Kallio and Bendik M Johansen. Kallio, a former Finnish Border Guard helicopter test pilot (EASA FTR Cat 2) who graduated from the Empire Test Pilots' School and for seven years was responsible for its MCF training, will lead the course. Johansen will act as a general theory instructor and as an H145 specialist. He was an MCF pilot at the Norwegian Coast Guard and has a test pilot qualification (EASA FTR Cat 1) from the Empire Test Pilots' School.

“Safety has always been one of the most important factors when selling services in the aviation industry, but the customers of helicopter operators are continuously raising their requirements for safe operations. In fact, buyers are often demanding safety levels that exceed officially regulated minimum standards,” says Kallio. “At the other end, pilots are also increasingly demanding higher safety procedures from their employers. MCF pilots are highly valued as specialised experts and becoming an MCF pilot is a desired career path for any aviator. By showing all its stakeholders that the operator is exceeding minimum safety requirement levels it gets a clear selling point."