LATAM Airlines Group inaugurates Boeing 787 maintenance training simulator

Santiago, Chile – LATAM Airlines Group has inaugurated an advanced simulator for training maintenance technicians for its Boeing 787 fleet at its Technical Training LATAM (TTL) center located at its maintenance base in Santiago, Chile. The company already has 18 Boeing 787s in its fleet (10 787-8s and eight 787-9s), making it the Latin American airline with the highest number of 787s.

 

This simulator is the first of its kind in Chile and was developed together with Boeing and Burnsville, Minnesota-based Aerosim Technologies Inc., a provider of technologies and solutions for commercial aviation training. The simulator reproduces the aircraft’s operation and represents various real-life scenarios within a controlled and safe environment, which allows technicians to learn without putting the aircraft or their personal safety at risk. The simulator design incorporates real information from the aircraft for analyzing faults, providing training on processes, identifying parts, problem resolution exercises, and other tasks. 

 

“LATAM Airlines Group continuously invests in the most modern technology to optimize its operations and the service it offers passengers. The new simulator will allow us to train more technicians in less time and at a lower cost, and the examples used in the courses can be tailored to our specific situation. Between 2016 and 2019, we expect to train more than 500 technicians in the region,” said Sebastián Acuto, senior vice president of maintenance at LATAM Airlines Group.

 

The simulator is installed in a room equipped to train 16 technicians (8 training stations) who can practice different scenarios at the same time. It also has one station for the instructor with three parallel projectors that can be personalized to show different views of the simulation (instruments, aircraft exterior, schematics, etc.).

 

Common defects can be simulated, which allows the technicians to follow the fault/problem resolution process recommended by the manufacturer without putting the aircraft at risk and to learn as if they are working on the actual aircraft.

 

Each student station also has a maintenance laptop, which simulates the laptop used by technicians who carry out maintenance tasks on the Boeing 787 fleet. 

 

To achieve high levels of learning, the TTL adopts a blended training methodology based on the study “How We Learn” by U.S. psychiatrist William Glaser. For this, the TTL relies on a group of highly qualified professionals and a world-class infrastructure that includes training rooms in Chile, Argentina, Peru, and the United States. The training rooms are equipped with computers, tablets, e-learning materials, and training simulators, providing an interactive training that combines theoretical concepts with practical exercises in a controlled environment and without putting the safety of the aircraft or technicians at risk.

 

Every year LATAM (TTL) administers more than 340 courses (equivalent to approximately 2,000 days of courses in 2015, considering only TTL instructors) and trains more than 2,000 technicians (each technician can take one or more courses per year in different subjects). 

 

LATAM is the new brand for LAN Airlines, TAM Airlines, and affiliates. 

 

Source: LATAM Airlines Group S.A.