Static Staffing as Simulator Fleet Grows Fivefold

⊲ U.S. Government Accountability Office ⊳ A new GAO report finds that the number of flight simulators under Federal Aviation Administration oversight has grown by more than 500 percent since 1990, from 190 to 1,181, while National Simulator Program staffing has stayed almost flat, rising from 23 to 25. To manage the workload, NSP extends evaluation intervals up to 36 months for high-performing simulators, but six of ten sponsors interviewed said NSP does not explain how those decisions are made. GAO also found NSP lacks staff with expertise across the more than 230 aircraft types simulators replicate, and recommends better sponsor communication and closing skills gaps; the Department of Transportation has agreed.
⊲ A fleet expanding from 190 to 1,181 simulators against a National Simulator Program still fielding just 25 staff exposes how stretched aviation safety oversight has become. ⊳
⊲ Image – GAO ⊳
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