Synthetic Flight Instructor

Synthetic Flight Instructor or simply SFI is the easiest way how to become an instructor for the specific aircraft type. There are few differences in SFI privileges compared to the Type Rating Instructor certificate. SFI certificate does not provide the privilege to provide any kind of the training in real aircraft.

The major benefits of the SFI certificate is that you as a holder

• can obtain the SFI for any kind of aircraft type
• do not need to have the actual flight experience in the particular aircraft type
• do not need to have a valid flight crew licence, nor the medical certificate

In other words, the SFI certificate gives the opportunity to the holder to act as an instructor in the simulator even without any licence or medical. This could be particularly interesting for you if you are a retired pilot or you lost your medical certificate.

SFI Training concept

The Synthetic Flight Instructor training course is very similar to the Type Rating Instructor course.

The SFI training course develops safety awareness throughout by imparting knowledge, skills, and attitudes relevant to the SFI task. The SFI Training program is designed to adequately train the candidate instructor in theoretical-knowledge instruction, flight instruction, and FSTD instruction to enable the candidate instructor to instruct others on an aeroplane type rating for which the candidate instructor is qualified.

Special attention should be given to the candidate instructor’s maturity and judgment including their understanding of adults, behavioural attitudes, and variable levels of learning ability. During the training course, the candidate instructor should be made aware of their own attitude towards the importance of flight safety.

Ab-initio Synthetic Flight Instructor training consists of three parts.

• Part 1: Teaching and learning  AMC1 FCL.920;
• Part 2: Technical theoretical knowledge instruction (technical training);
• Part 3: Flight instruction (operation of IOS)

The Teaching and Learning module can be attended indenpendently on the SFI course. Should you are a holder of any EASA instructor certificate - e.g. MCCI or TRI, you will be fully exempted from attending the Teaching and learning module.

Part 2 and Part 3 are complementary to eachother. Duration of Part 3 depends on if you are already a holder of SFI. For ab-initio SFI training the Part 3 lasts 10 hours for the operation of IOS.

Privileges

The Synthetic Flight Instructor certificate allows you to provide training for:

• issue, revalidation and renewal of the type-related instrument rating
• the issue, revalidation and renewal of type ratings for the typerating you are qualified for as SFI
• as a holder of SFI(MPA) you will also be allowed to provide MCC training (equivalent of MCCI privileges) and MPL training

Limitations

Your SFI privileges will be restricted to the FTD 2/3 or FFS of the aircraft type in which the SFI training course was taken.

The privileges may be extended to other FSTDs representing further types of aeroplanes if you havee:

• completed the simulator content of the relevant type rating course;
• completed the relevant parts of the technical training and the FSTD content of the flight instruction syllabus of the applicable TRI course;
• conducted on a complete type rating course at least 3 hours of flight instruction related to the duties of an SFI on the applicable type under the supervision and to the satisfaction of a TRE or an SFE qualified for this purpose.

SFI Validity

The validity of your Synthetic Flight Instructor certificate is 3 years. 

Revalidation

To revalidate an SFI(A) certificate, you have to fulfill at least two out of the three following requirements before the expiry date of the SFI certificate:

• completed at least 50 hours as instructors or examiners in FSTDs, of which at least 15 hours in the period of 12 months immediately preceding the expiry date of the SFI certificate;
• complete instructor refresher training as a SFI(A) at an ATO;
• pass a SFI assessment of competence with TRE/SFE