Flight Simulation

You know when you have been spending too much time on your layout when you go to fly a plane and it all goes wrong. It has been months since I got behind the joystick.I have under construction the full size interior of a Boeing 737 jet liner. It has taken many years and much silent money (the sort that the good lady doesn't know about!!) to get to the stage that I am at.

Below is not the most recent picture but it is the only one I have to hand at the time of writing and was taken just over a year ago.



I have a total of 7 screens at the moment with a couple more to follow. Nearly all the buttons and switches work like they should do in the real aircraft. The wiring at the back is not for public view as there is just so much and it also needs a good tidy - hence the fire extinguisher!!

The joy for me is the start up on the ground, taxiing and take off. Then comes the landing.
It is really great fun but today I just got it completely wrong through lack of practice.

Just thought i would share that with you.

I will try again tomorrow.

Gary

 

A great diversion to read something different from train modelling.  Thanks, Gary.   :thumbs

I'd like to see more of your set up when you have time.

The fire extinguisher is an interesting addition to your flight deck equipment.   

Hi Max and thank you for your comments. I will keep this post going and add bits of interest from time to time.
I appreciate that this club is for railway enthusiasts but I like all things to do with transport. It is a bit late in the day here but I will post some of the specs and the programmes that I use just to get it up in the air.
I will get the good lady to take some pics of me flying so you can get the feel of just how it flies and works.
I admire the real life pilots as it is not just a sit back and relax job.
The fire extinguisher is there for a reason and is in a scale position to the real thing although it is not the same that would be used on the aircraft.

Gary

Here is a series I'm currently watching, on outback pilots.

Yahoo Australia | News, email and search

I'm really enjoying it.

That looks like a good series Max. Those pilots earn every dollar they make. Hats off to them.

Gary

Having been for a successful flight this afternoon :Happy from Bordeaux to Alicante, I thought I would post a couple of pictures of my flight sim with stuff running.The first image is me parked at gate B1 at Bordeaux awaiting instructions for push back and engine start and then taxi to runway 05.



The next image is a closer shot of the flight deck overhead.

 

The Flight Simulator is Microsoft Flight Simulator X running on Windows 7 Professional.
Within the simulator, I have dedicated software for the Boeing 737 800 from an American company called PMDG.
The instruments, switches and buttons all 'talk' to the simulator via a number of installed software programmes connected through various circuit boards.

To actually fly the beast, I have a total of 8 separate programmes running (sometimes 9 if I want passenger realism too) and it takes around 20 minutes to set up before I can even throw a switch.

As I said, this is an ongoing project just like my layout. 

Where do I find the time?

Gary 

That looks like great fun although knowing Bordeaux Merignac airport, I'm not totally convinced by the backdrop ……………….

Where do you get all the hardware - gauges, dials and switches etc.?

Hi Petermac,
It is great fun.
Regarding the Bordeaux airport, it is unfortunately a generic airport within Microsoft Flight Simulator. I have programmes that show certain airports in photographic detail but Bordeaux isn't one of them. I knew I should have flown from a different airport!!
Regarding all the hardware - where do I start?
Believe it or not, most of the hardware, panels and dials were purchased before I retired (for obvious reasons) from a company called Opencockpits whilst still living in the UK. I now live in Spain and ironically, Opencockpits is a Spanish company.
The switches were sourced from the UK and many of the circuit boards that read and interpret what the switches do were also from the UK. Some of the software is from Norway. The throttle quadrant (which is motorised so the throttle levers, trim wheels and spoilers are all programmed to react to movements of the aircraft) is from Germany.