It's off to the airport again for a short hop down to New Jersey for the CAE AW139 simulator. It seems someone has decided we need to hit the sim every six months now, for our various "check rides". This one is the Operator Proficiency Check, as opposed to the Transport Canada Pilot Proficiency Check we are faced with yearly to maintain our commercial pilot's licence. The OPC follows the PPC by six months. It's a way to assure everyone is maintaining the proficiency required and following standard operating procedures, but as a TRE, I quite enjoyed giving OPCs on the aircraft in the field. The simulator is a far more efficient way to assess a pilot's capabilities, but it's reduced some of the perks of my position. Nevertheless, blasting off in hard IFR weather ("hard" not as in difficult, but meaning "at minimums or less", like over a decade of flying out of Halifax!) in the congested complicated airspace of Rome or New York, and faced with engine control malfunctions and fires and electrical glitches, is far more challenging in the simulator than anything we can recreate in the field. The training gained, as usual, is first rate. As a company TRE, I'm queried about how the script and training could be improved upon, and I provide feedback as best as I am able, hoping to improve the process. The process is continually evolving, changing, sometimes taking a step or two backwards, but overall, forever forward. Thirty years in the industry, I can feel it.
All the travel, all the challenges, it gets addictive, and back home again, I quickly get bored. I'm asking about overtime, does anyone need me? I'm ready to head back to work, but I've still got three weeks to kill....
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