Market Intelligence: Europe

• New Full Flight Simulator (FFS) and Cabin Training Devices for the Airbus A350 now in operation at Zurich Airport.
• SWISS and Edelweiss use new infrastructure to fly in the Airbus A350.
• Important investment and future-oriented strengthening of pilot and crew training in Switzerland as an aviation location.

Lufthansa Aviation Training (LAT) is putting a state-of-the-art full flight simulator (FFS) and the latest cabin training devices for the Airbus A350 into operation at Zurich Airport as of January 2025. The Lufthansa Group’s own training organization is thus expanding its range of services and strengthening its pilot and crew training for SWISS, Edelweiss and other customers with the latest technology.

After months of planning, intensive testing and close cooperation with the manufacturers, these ultra-modern training devices are now ready for training operations. With this step, LAT is expanding its modern training portfolio for its customers, including the latest technologies, such as the use of virtual reality in cabin training. With the new training infrastructure in the immediate vicinity of Zurich-Kloten Airport, LAT enables its Swiss customers to minimize their own travel expenses from the outset, save costs and resources and at the same time make an important contribution to sustainability.

SWISS and Edelweiss are simultaneously setting a new milestone in the modernization of their long-haul fleets by successively introducing a total of 16 aircraft of the modern, highly economical and CO2-efficient Airbus A350-900 twin-engine type from 2025. In the long term, these will replace the remaining four-engine Airbus A340-300 aircraft.

Efficient training thanks to state-of-the-art technology

The Airbus A350 FFS was specially developed to meet the requirements of modern flight training. The possibilities include

• Cross Crew Qualification (CCQ): Transition from other Airbus models to the Airbus A350.
• Common Type Rating (CTR): Retraining from the Airbus A330 to the Airbus A350.
• Evidence-Based Training (EBT): Scenarios for safety-critical decision-making processes in the cockpit.

A successful teamwork project

Planning for the new simulator began in mid-2023 in close collaboration between LAT, SWISS and Edelweiss. Following successful delivery in October 2024 and installation at Zurich Airport in Opfikon, the simulator and training devices are now ready for training operations.

“The early commissioning of the full flight simulator and the cabin training devices for the Airbus A350 will provide our customers SWISS and Edelweiss with ideal support for the A350’s entry into service this year. We are thus ensuring that we can offer our colleagues at SWISS and Edelweiss state-of-the-art training facilities directly in Switzerland, while at the same time reducing high travel expenses from the outset in the interests of cost avoidance and sustainability,” explains Manuel Meier, Managing Director Lufthansa Aviation Training Switzerland.

About Lufthansa Aviation Training
With its competencies in training flight and cabin crews at ten training locations worldwide, Lufthansa Aviation Training GmbH (LAT) is among the world leaders in the field of aviation training. The company is headquartered at Munich Airport and employs around 800 people at all its locations. Its client portfolio encompasses more than 250 nationally and internationally renowned airlines, among them the Lufthansa Group airlines. LAT operates close to 200 training devices. These include training aircraft for pilot training, flight simulators for all common aircraft types for pilot training, as well as emergency and service mock-ups for cabin crews. The flight schools of the Lufthansa Group are joined under LAT’s brand European Flight Academy (EFA). 

Source: Lufthansa Aviation Training
Photo Credit: Lufthansa Aviation Training