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Would anyone happen to know the requirements for simulators built for flight training use? You need quite a few hours on the simulator before you can really get

by evoxed 15y ago

Would anyone happen to know the requirements for simulators built for flight training use? You need quite a few hours on the simulator before you can really get to work on your pilot's license, renting the thing out during work hours to certified flight instructors/schools during the day would be a hell of a side business.

exDM69 15y ago
If you need something FAA certified, it's going to cost you a whole lot more than a non-certified one. X-Plane flight sim is available with certification for flight instruction use. It costs more than the desktop version. For a private pilot's licence you're not required to have any sim time, but it's a very good idea anyway. But if you just want to practice your upcoming flying lesson with an instructor in a real airplane, pretty much any modern flight simulator is good enough for basic training. Off the shelf gaming controllers are good enough. You don't need a certified sim for that. For commercial pilots flying passenger jets, there are big simulators that are different beasts.
- bonzoesc 15y ago
  Delta Air Lines sells time in their passenger jet simulators, but the pricing is undoubtedly in the "if you have to ask, you can't afford it" range: https://www.delta.com/business_programs_services/training/pilot_training/simulator_training_devices/index.jsp https://www.delta.com/business_programs_services/training/pi... The full motion simulators they have a picture of are intense; they feel like the real thing in motion, in controls (weighted and worn like the real thing), and in sound. I was lucky enough to try one for a C-130 last year, and I'm still a bit blown away by it.
- ajross 15y ago
  Last I remember, the FAA doesn't certify software. A certified simulator is a hardware installation. There's really nothing specific required of the software; early "certified" simulators were just instrument gauges and a trivially simple flight model. There are some FlightGear-based training devices too.
  - exDM69 15y ago
    It may be that you need a certification for each hardware installation separately. However, there are software requirements for FAA certification. This is from X-Plane Professional description: "It provides hardware and frame-rate checks required for FAA certification of the simulator".

by evoxed 15y ago

exDM69 15y ago

If you need something FAA certified, it's going to cost you a whole lot more than a non-certified one. X-Plane flight sim is available with certification for flight instruction use. It costs more than the desktop version. For a private pilot's licence you're not required to have any sim time, but it's a very good idea anyway. But if you just want to practice your upcoming flying lesson with an instructor in a real airplane, pretty much any modern flight simulator is good enough for basic training. Off the shelf gaming controllers are good enough. You don't need a certified sim for that. For commercial pilots flying passenger jets, there are big simulators that are different beasts.

bonzoesc 15y ago
Delta Air Lines sells time in their passenger jet simulators, but the pricing is undoubtedly in the "if you have to ask, you can't afford it" range: https://www.delta.com/business_programs_services/training/pilot_training/simulator_training_devices/index.jsp https://www.delta.com/business_programs_services/training/pi... The full motion simulators they have a picture of are intense; they feel like the real thing in motion, in controls (weighted and worn like the real thing), and in sound. I was lucky enough to try one for a C-130 last year, and I'm still a bit blown away by it.
ajross 15y ago
Last I remember, the FAA doesn't certify software. A certified simulator is a hardware installation. There's really nothing specific required of the software; early "certified" simulators were just instrument gauges and a trivially simple flight model. There are some FlightGear-based training devices too.
- exDM69 15y ago
  It may be that you need a certification for each hardware installation separately. However, there are software requirements for FAA certification. This is from X-Plane Professional description: "It provides hardware and frame-rate checks required for FAA certification of the simulator".