Turkish opts for Thales RealitySeven

This brings to 14 the total of RealitySeven FFS sold at date, including Airbus’ decision to acquire six of the new simulators for its facilities in France and in the USA.

Thales’s new RealitySeven FFS is based on a modular design, with a common core element independent of the aircraft type. Different aircraft modules can effectively be ‘swapped’ out, as a customer’s fleet or training business needs change, without the entire simulator needing to be replaced and without the need for further investment.

The two new simulators are designed to the very latest Airbus standard: the first is compliant with the Airbus A320, the second will be ‘swapped’ between the A330 and A340 aircraft types. This follows Turkish Airlines’ training requirements and the rate at which new aircraft are acquired.

RealitySeven is a top-level simulator meeting the level seven requirements of the Multicrew Pilots Licence (MPL), a higher standard that the current level D simulator status. It uses key technologies to drive down operational costs.

According to Marion Broughton, Managing Director of Thales’s training and simulation civil business: “RealitySeven is designed with the total cost of ownership in mind. But more than this, it also exceeds the latest environmental directives and dramatically reduces the carbon footprint compared to other full flight simulators.”

The new simulators will be housed in the THY Flight Training Academy at Atatürk International Airport, Istanbul. They will join a Thales A320 simulator supplied in 2007.

Dr. Temel Kotil, CEO of Turkish Airlines adds: “We have a long-established relationship with Thales and trust them to deliver the right technology at the right price. The flexibility that the new RealitySeven simulator brings in being able to ‘swap’ aircraft types will enable us to meet our training needs both now and in the future.”