AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2016 - 66

TRAIN LIKE YOU FLY
FlightSafety has Honda pilots 'flying' on day one.
Building and certifying an airplane and building a factory are just
a part of what an all-new aviation company must do to compete.
Honda Aircraft has done all of that. It has dealers in many parts of
the world and is working on a service network, the anchor of which
is at the Greensboro, North Carolina, factory. Training, of course, is
another requirement for a jet manufacturer, since a type rating and
recurrent training are required by the FAA to fly a jet.
Not surprisingly, Honda partnered with another well-known
brand for that function. FlightSafety International delivered a Level
D simulator to the factory training center in February 2015 and was
training pilots only a few months later. The Level D simulator allows
pilots to get the type rating without ever touching the real airplane.
As flashy as the sim is, it is only a part of the training, reminds
Eric Dixon, FlightSafety's training center manager. With the ability
to start from scratch, the FSI team developed a new process for
HondaJet pilots, which starts on day one in the Operational Day
Flow classroom. There, pilots are "in the cockpit" from the beginning of the 15- to 16-day course, Dixon explains. By that he means
the pilots' heads are in the cockpit on day one, planning a mission
and executing it while being introduced to systems as they would
be encountered during a flight. The old-school method would
have students spending a week or more on nothing but systems
before ever considering what it takes to fly the airplane. The new
approach has them start with a checklist and begin to understand
the systems as they're needed. Each student has a "graphical flight deck" simulator next to him or her, which allows the
students to step through system controls just as they would in the
Garmin G3000 cockpit. Students then master the skills in avionics training suites and then finally begin training in the sim, where
by then the systems are second nature and the student can focus
on actually flying the airplane and making in-flight decisions. "The
operational day flow process makes the transition to the cockpit
simple," says Dixon.
-TBH

THE HONDAJET lavatory (top) includes a real sink and mirror-

unusual in this size of aircraft. The large baggage door pivots along
the fuselage to avoid striking the engine pylons (above). Despite
the unusual position of the engines (right), V1 cuts, practiced in
the simulator, proved to be predictable and quite manageable.
The HondaJet includes a rudder bias system, unusual in light jets.

clamshell design on the tail, as opposed to
the more traditional wing-mounted brakes.
There is very little bump when the brakes
are deployed and no limit on airspeed.
"They don't startle the passengers," says
Frazier. With the North Carolina countryside filling the windscreen, we soon level off
at FL240 and then continue a more gradual descent to 11,000 feet to check out some
maneuvers. But first I try out the cruise
speed control. Dial a speed into the autopilot and the FADEC will modulate fuel flow
to maintain the speed. It's not quite autothrottles, but you can see them from there.
66 | AOPA PILOT August 2016

With thrust pulled back and holding altitude, I soon feel the
stick shaker alert me that we're straying into the stall zone. I ignore
it and soon the pusher takes charge, pushing the nose over to maintain flying speed. The pusher is unusual but not unheard of in light
jets. Frazier says it is an aid to single pilots, not a device to mask
any bad manners in a full stall.
Anyone who has flown a Garmin GTN 750 will be comfortable loading a procedure in the FMS; the navigation
pages are nearly identical. We choose an ILS to Runway 23L
at Greensboro. I hand-fly the final segment. Trimmed up, the
airplane is remarkably stable. Crossing the fence, I'm slowing
through the VREF of 108 KIAS and touch down very gently, if I
do say so myself. Frazier resets the flaps and I add the thrust for
a touch and go, reminding myself about the touchy nose gear
steering. The thrust takes a second to kick in but when it does,
I'm pressed into the seat.
"That was really good," says Frazier, as surprised as I am.
"Beginner's luck," I deflect, really feeling the pressure now for
the second one. A normal pattern yields another really nice
touchdown and more congratulations from Frazier as we do
another touch and go. The third one, a full stop, is just as nice. I'm
usually my own worst critic, especially regarding landings. But
they were three good ones. I'd like to think it's some exceptional
talent on my part, but I know the reality is that the Honda wing
and the trailing-link landing gear simply make for nice landings.
My toes find the sweet spot quickly and we're taxiing back to
the Honda ramp without any jerkiness.

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of AOPA Pilot Magazine - August 2016