Avinor Air Navigation Services has gone live with Airways International's TotalControl simulator at Oslo Airport in Norway, after successfully completing remote site acceptance testing (SAT).
With border restrictions still in place due to COVID-19, travel to Norway wasn't possible for Airways International (AIL). The key challenge was to meet an October 1, go-live-date for the simulator and enable Avinor ANS to commence its training as air traffic ramped up again.
Creative solutions were needed by AIL to meet this challenge. A COVID-19 mitigation plan was enacted which included remotely performing factory acceptance testing; AIL specialists guiding local technicians through the installation of hardware from New Zealand; using AIL's bespoke virtual platform Airways Knowledge Online (AKO) to deliver training to the Avinor ANS team; and undertaking SAT remotely.
The successful completion of SAT for the Oslo Airport simulator signals the end of a five-month development and testing process. Remote factory acceptance testing occurred in August at Airways' Christchurch base, using innovative technology to enable the Avinor ANS team to participate from Norway. This process was further refined leading up to SAT, with Avinor ANS reporting that hands-on participation was more engaging than a typical face-to-face SAT and cemented their simulator training.
