DLR receives official authorisation to train flight test personnel
May 8, 2026 | A milestone for flight testing in Germany
DLR receives official authorisation to train flight test personnel
Briefing in the cockpit of a DLR research aircraft
DLR is part of an exclusive group of organisations worldwide authorised to certify test pilots and flight test engineers in accordance with stringent European standards set by the EASA.
DLR is expanding its capabilities in flight testing and training in accordance with European standards.
Responsibility for flight test training is being transferred in full to the DLR Flight Experiments facility.
This is a decisive contribution to securing critical expertise in the aviation sector in Germany and Europe.
Focus: Aviation, flight testing
The German Aerospace Center (Deutsches Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt; DLR) is strengthening national sovereignty in the field of flight testing. In collaboration with Airwork Operations, DLR has been officially recognised as an EASA-certified training organisation for flight test personnel (ATO flight test). This places DLR among an exclusive circle of organisations worldwide authorised to qualify test pilots and flight test engineers in accordance with stringent European standards.
With this certification, DLR underscores its leading position in the European flight testing landscape. We are now able to ensure the highly specialised qualification of our personnel independently and maintain test clearances at the highest level. In doing so, we make a decisive contribution to securing critical expertise at the aviation hubs of Germany and Europe.
"With this certification, DLR underscores its leading position in the European flight testing landscape," says Markus Fischer, DLR Divisional Board Member for Aeronautics. "We are now able to ensure the highly specialised qualification of our personnel independently and maintain test clearances at the highest level."
Strategic expansion of training competence
DLR has been an official operating facility of the Airwork ATO for years, training pilots on DLR aircraft using its own instructional and examining staff, but this scope has now been significantly expanded. The new authorisation under EASA Part-FCL.820 transfers full responsibility for flight test training content to the DLR Flight Experiments facility.
Ingmar Mayerbuch, Head of Flight Operations at the DLR Flight Experiments facility, is proud of his team's new capability: "With this certification now in place, we can adapt the complex training of flight test personnel much more effectively to our demanding research flight operations."
Focus on young talent and international cooperation
The newly acquired privileges serve primarily for internal development:
Internal qualification: Focus on the training and further development of our own young talent (fixed-wing aircraft, categories 1 and 2).
Knowledge transfer: DLR advises partner organisations and authorities and fosters professional exchange.
Future outlook: An expansion of the authorisation to include helicopters is already being planned.
There are no plans to market the training commercially. Instead, DLR is committed to continuing its proven collaborations with established international test pilot schools, complementing each other on equal terms, and offering collaborators intensive exchange and cooperation in the field of flight testing.
Strengthening national sovereignty
The successful certification was achieved in close coordination with the Austrian aviation authority Austro Control, which approved the ATO expansion. This collaboration builds on a proven track record of cooperation in previous joint projects and consolidates German-Austrian collaboration in the aviation sector. With this step, DLR is making a decisive contribution to securing critical expertise at the aviation hubs of Germany and Europe.
