A system and method for inspecting a composite material structure for defects includes a) an inspection apparatus having a heating device for heating a surface of the structure, an infrared camera for receiving radiation from the surface in response to heating, a controller configured to generate thermal images from the infrared radiation, b) a training system includes an arrangement for obtaining thermal images from a known composite material sample including a plurality of heating elements positioned to apply heat to an entire surface of the sample, an infrared camera for capturing thermal images of the sample, and a processing system for recording the thermal images in a training database, and c) a computer system coupled to the training system and the inspection apparatus adapted to receive thermal images from the inspection apparatus and detect parameters of defects in the structure using the training database.