Cargolux has announced that the world’s first full-flight simulator (FFS) for the new Boeing 747-8 freighter aircraft is ready for training at the company’s training centre in Luxembourg. Built by Canada-based CAE, the FFS received Interim Level C qualification from the ‘Direction de l’Aviation Civile’ (DAC) on 30 April 2012, Luxembourg’s national aviation authority, after the successful evaluation by the Luftfahrt-Bundesamt (LBA), the German counterpart of the DAC.

Cargolux introduced the industry’s first Boeing 747-400 freighter FFS in February 2000, also developed by CAE and now history is repeating itself with the new Boeing 747-8 freighter FFS, Cargolux noted.

‘The integration of the new simulator into the Cargolux crew  training provides us with a more efficient simulator operation. The application of new technologies results in lower energy consumption and a higher fidelity training environment compared to
our 747-400F full-flight simulator,’ said Frank Reimen, Cargolux president and CEO.

“Our own team, in collaboration with CAE and Boeing, has done a great job in achieving the regulatory qualification for our 747-8F full-flight simulator. This is a further milestone in the Cargolux 747-8 program,” said Marcel Funk, VP and head of Flight Operations. “Being the world’s first company to operate a 747-8F full-flight simulator enables us to set a new benchmark in flight crew training, for both our own and our customers’ crews,” Funk added.