Flight Simulation Training Devices (FSTD): levels, qualification and credit
This domain tests how EASA qualifies synthetic training devices under CS-FSTD(A), what each device type can and cannot do, and the principle that training credit flows from the approved course, not from the hardware.
Device families and limits
- FFS Levels A-D: full cockpit replica with motion. Levels A and B have three degrees of freedom (pitch, roll, heave); Levels C and D have six. Level D adds a wide daylight visual (150° x 40°) with high-fidelity motion and sound.
- FTD Levels 1-3: type-specific, generally without motion.
- FNPT Types I-III: generic devices; FNPT II, often combined with MCC, is the standard instrument trainer.
- BITD: not qualified under CS-FSTD(A), so its use is restricted to what the approved course allows.
Qualification
A competent authority qualifies each device and issues a certificate tied to its type, level, location and configuration. Relocate it, modify it substantially or change its use, and it must be re-evaluated before further credits are claimed. The operator maintains the qualification test guide and performs regular functional checks; the authority carries out recurrent evaluations.
Credit comes from the course
Qualification alone grants nothing. Credit is exactly what the approved ATO course (and, for the IR, Appendix 3) permits. Hours flown on an unqualified device, or beyond the approved syllabus, are not creditable and make the training record non-compliant.
Worked example
An ATO's IR course is approved for 50 hours of instrument time, of which up to 25 may be flown in an FNPT II or FFS. A student logs 30 FNPT II hours. Only 25 can count; the extra five exceed the approved credit, so the record must be corrected. If the school then moves the FNPT II to a second base, it must be re-evaluated there before any further hours are credited.
Traps that cost marks
Assuming a higher-level device gives unlimited credit; confusing FNPT I with FNPT II; assuming an FFS Level B supports zero flight time training, which needs Level D plus a specific approval; ignoring the ATO approval when counting hours.