Anyone done a flight simulator experience ?

[Medic-one]

As per title. Brother in law's 40st soon and he likes planes so we suggested this as a present which he seemed to like.

Just been googling and there seem to be quite a few different ones out there, so just wondering if anyone on here's has done one, and with which company ?

I think he's more after the 747 big plane thing then some F1 figher jet plane.

[HTP99]

Medic-one said:

As per title. Brother in law's 40st soon and he likes planes so we suggested this as a present which he seemed to like.

Just been googling and there seem to be quite a few different ones out there, so just wondering if anyone on here's has done one, and with which company ?

I think he's more after the 747 big plane thing then some F1 figher jet plane.

Bit of an odd thing to celebrate, reaching 40 stone, will he be able to fit in the seat?

[Medic-one]

Oops....

Can i play my "i'm a foreigner card" again please...

He is going to be 40 years old next month, not 40 stone

[Chainguy]

If your interested I might be able to give a few pointers. Mate I fly with does sim instruction as a side thing, all legit, has his own company doing it as a paid hobby.

He can do either fixed base or moving. Depends if you want to spend a couple of hundred or go up in cost.

Also, if BiL is a 747 fan, no probs, said mate is a 747 driver so will bore the knackers off him about the big humpy heavy thing if thats his want.

Pm me if it's something you want to look into further.

[Meths]

Find if he's interested in lessons in a real Cessna or similar plane?

[pushthebutton]

I can't recommend it personally, but how about Concorde at Brooklands?

http://www.brooklandsmuseum.com/index.php?/your-vi...

[CraigyMc]

Medic-one said:

As per title. Brother in law's 40st soon and he likes planes so we suggested this as a present which he seemed to like.

Just been googling and there seem to be quite a few different ones out there, so just wondering if anyone on here's has done one, and with which company ?

I think he's more after the 747 big plane thing then some F1 figher jet plane.

I put my best mate (and his missus) in a Full Motion 747 simulator for an hour at http://www.virtualaviation.co.uk/pages/ffs for £600* a few years ago (2007 iirc).

It's not just a "for fun" simulator - pilots get ratings for planes in this sort.
The facility isn't open to the general public short of a confirmed booking on a simulator, and you need a passport to get in.
They have a lot of defence related simulators in the same place (Burgess Hill).
He absolutely loved it, but was slightly miffed that he didn't get to fly into Kai Tak, which had recently been closed (his missus is from Hong Kong - he had been a passenger on a few flights into there).

Apparently the simulators are kept bang up to date by the manufacturer (http://www.cae.com) and you can't "play" with them very much in that way - they aim for 100% reality.

* = actually £600 in Tesco Deals vouchers, made from £150 of "real money"**
** = created from £150 equivalent in Marriot Rewards points, accrued while on business, which cost me nothing (ignoring opportunity cost).

C

[Dodsy]

I had a session at british airways a few years back in their pilot training simulator. Awesome. These are pilot training simulators the ones on big hydraulic legs. We discovered that you can do somerhing akin to a handbrake turn on the runway and that if you dive fast enough the wings come off.

Apart from a bit of dicking around we actually did a lot of proper flying , takeoffs and landings.

Dont go for static simulator go for the real deal you won't regret it