It was Christmas Day last year and time to do the exchanging of gifts. My fiancee, Hilary, handed me a large blue folder which said "To Paul, love you, hope you like this." I think I said something like "It's a lovely folder."

After being encouraged to open it, I discovered every aviation enthusiast's dream present, a flight in a Boeing 737-800 professional simulator. As you may imagine, I was like a kid in a candy shop and this week saw my dream fulfilled when we drove the 26 miles to a sleepy little village called Stacksteads which lies in the heart of Lancashire, UK.

The package should have cost £130 but the company 'Flightdeck Experience' had discounted it to around £100 as a special offer. Included in the deal was one hour in the briefing room learning the principles and layout of the cockpit, and one hour in the simulator cockpit. The experience was made realistic by having the entrance area look like an actual check-in desk at an airport. This included monitors showing flight times plus a real walk-through airport metal detector.

Meet The Team

From left to right:
Steve Everson, owner, technical wizard and all round nice guy.
Vicky Everson, owner, administrator and very welcoming.
Me, Paul Mort, overweight dude with a passion for flight simulation.
Fareed Derar, flight instructor, my first officer for the day and a very knowledgeable young man.

The Briefing

The preflight briefing took about forty minutes and covered everything from basic principles of flight to the layout and operation of the cockpit. Fareed conducted a very thorough briefing, explaining with the aid of a giant image board of the cockpit. I was told what my duties as captain would be and what my first officer would operate during the flight. Questions were encouraged and the whole procedure was conducted in a light-hearted and friendly manner. That covered, we took a five minute break for refreshments before boarding the simulator.

The Flight

Following a quite nervous break, it was finally time to get to grips with the 737 cockpit. The corridor to the simulator was made out to replicate a jet boarding bridge; an impressive touch. Even more impressive however, was the full size 737 door welcoming me into the boarding area. It was so realistic in appearance that I asked Steve if this was a genuine 737 piece of kit, to which he replied 'No, I made this'. Unbelievable. What a guy!

One of the unique features of this simulator is that not only is there a flight deck, but to the rear is a replicated passenger cabin complete with twelve seats and eight windows. Each window has its own dedicated video display which gives you a different view depending on where you're sitting (over the wing etc.). Refreshments are even available (free of charge) from the goodies trolley.

On entering the cockpit I was surprised by how small the cockpit actually was. I'm no lightweight, but the 737 was obviously made as a work area, rather than for comfort. The visuals for this state of the art display are produced by a video projector which produces a 180 degree wrap around seamless display. This makes the outside world very convincing. Although the cockpit does not move hydraulically, the sensations (vibrations) of touchdown are definitely present as are the sounds of a real 737.

Manchester To Leeds Bradford

We put on our headsets with Hilary sat behind me in the jump seat. After Fareed called for a tug, we completed the checklist and pushed back from the terminal at EGCC Manchester Airport. It was then my job to taxi out to runway 24 with the Boeing quadrant wheel to my left, which seemed really strange at first but became easier with time.

We sat silent for a minute, a silence which was soon interrupted by the roar of the engines as we throttled up and the beast began to speed down the runway. Fareed called 'Rotate' and my stomach sank as I pulled back on the yoke (stiffer than I expected). We climbed to our preselected altitude and I had control (virtually) of a one hundred ton monster.

All procedures were manually carried out and within a few minutes of following the flight director, the sight of EGNM Leeds Bradford appeared ahead. It was up to me to land this aircraft...what a scary thought! One of the major differences in a professional simulator to the one at home is the response of your aircraft to your input. Here I had to anticipation my turns ahead of time, something I wasn't quite used to. Amazingly though, I somehow made a decent landing (if somewhat long) and wiped the sweat from my forehead. Flight simulation wise, it doesn't get much better than that!

Kai Tak Night Approach

I was told that my second mission would be an approach to the infamous VHHH Kai Tak Airport, which was located in Hong Kong (closed in 1998). After a brief pause to reset the system, there it was, a remarkable scene made up of hundreds of skyscrapers, all lit up in their night time glory. The sharp turn point was indicated by the famous red and white checkerboard situated on a hill. I made a sharp turn and there was the runway ahead of me. As I got closer I swear it said 'Come on, big boy, if you think you're good enough.' In no time at all, we crossed the threshold and after a bit of wing jiggling, we were down. Phew!

Innsbruck Evening Approach

For my next and final trick, I was to make a 30 degree turn hugging the mountains of the valley of LOWI Innsbruck and try to land this bucket on a short roll out. Fareed told me to use the church in the valley as an indicator for my heading and I must admit I became a bit religious as I made my roll out just in time to pull off maybe my best landing of the three. Job done. We followed the taxi way towards a beckoning marshal which sadly signaled the end of my one hour of delight.

I asked my first officer as we arrived back in the departure lounge, where he would rate my overall performance on from a scale of one to ten. He replied '6.5' and I was delighted as he explained 5 is an average 'pilot' and 8, 9 and 10 is usually reserved for real world pilots.

The Experience As A Whole

The whole concept of this business run by Steve and Vicky has been extremely well planned so as to give the visitor maximum enjoyment. Not just the cockpit experience but the package as a whole. Everything is made to resemble the style of a real airport. The 12 seater passenger cabin is a superb addition and enables large parties to visit. Although there is obviously not room in the cockpit for thirteen people, a monitor in the passenger cabin shows a live display of what is going on in the cockpit, plus instrumentation and route progress.

Steve and Vicky are two extremely passionate and enthusiastic individuals who have successfully managed to turn their hobby into a successful business. Even though it's a business however, they are always more than happy to answer questions you may have regarding the simulator. For example, Steve very kindly showed me his next development; a Boeing 747 simulator. It's still in its early stages, but if their 737 simulator is anything to go by, then I can't wait!

Unfortunately, Fareed is leaving them in 3 weeks to train as a first officer with Ryanair. He's a really friendly guy and I wished him all the best.

For The Tech Heads

I'm told, it takes no less than nine computers to run the whole show.

Systems: Prosim AR737
Visuals: Lockheed Martin Prepar3D
Flight Model: Jetstream 737-800 W
Visual System: FOV 180 degrees by 40 degrees HD Projection System
12 seat passenger cabin with individual window displays
Navigation Data: Navigraph Database

According to Trip Advisor reviews, people have travelled the length of Great Britain to enjoy this experience and what an experience it is.

I hope you have enjoyed reading about my Flightdeck Experience.

It's well worth the journey.

Visit http://www.flightdeckexperience.co.uk.

Regards.

Paul Mort