Latvia’s airBaltic orders an A220 full-flight simulator

Level D simulator set for delivery to the leading airline of the Baltic states by the end of 2019 (CAE)

On its way to becoming a sole A220 aircraft operator, Latvian hybrid airline airBaltic has ordered an Airbus A220 Level D full flight simulator (FFS) from CAE, a Canadian manufacturer of simulation and modelling technologies. The new CAE 7000XR Series simulator is scheduled for delivery by the end of 2019.

“Introducing a single fleet type of up to 80 Airbus A220-300 aircraft also means that as an airline we will have to train hundreds of our existing and future pilots. A state-of-the-art FFS located right next to our headquarters will provide much desired training simplicity and cost reductions,” explains Martin Gauss, chief executive of airBaltic.

“The new simulator will add to the uniqueness of the airBaltic Training [division]. There are only two Airbus A220 simulators in Europe and this will be the newest such simulator in the world,” Martin Gauss adds.

The flight-training device, which will be based at the airBaltic Training establishment at Riga International Airport (IATA code RIX), the airline’s home base, is the first new FFS ever purchased by a Latvian company.

airBaltic has ordered a fully equipped simulator that includes a 60-inch Stroke Electric Motion System as well as a modern visual system consisting of four million-megapixel LED Projector systems and dual head-up displays. The CAE 7000XR Series FFS, which comes equipped with the CAE Tropos 6000XR visual system for added realism, will perfectly serve the pilot training needs of airBaltic Training.

Currently airBaltic’s fleet consists of 34 aircraft: 14 Airbus A220-300s, eight Boeing 737s and 12 Bombardier Q400 Next-Gen aircraft. This year eight more new A220-300s (formerly known as the Bombardier C Series 300) will join the airline, while six B737-300s and two B737-500 jets will be phased out, further streamlining its fleet.

airBaltic Training, a subsidiary of airBaltic, is a specialist facility offering a wide range of aviation instruction. It was established in 2010 and since then has each year provided training to some 3000 professionals from across the world, including more than 1,500 pilots and almost 1,000 cabin crew members.