Bruges-Air-College: great and cheap full-motion 737-800 simulator

[Guest captain_dirk]

Hello,Today, I went to Bruges Air College, a non-certified but extremely impressive boeing 737-800 simulator. For the first time, (I am not a pilot), I experienced what it's like to be in control of a heavy jetliner and to be in the ambience of a very true to life cockpit environment. The simulator is not certified as it's not a 100% real simulation of the real aircraft, but it's VERY close to the real thing, with 3-axis motions and most systems running. Many pilots use the simulator for extra training. Most impressive was the lighting of the cockpit. As soon as you entered the cabin in which the cockpit was built, you truly felt like stepping into a real 737NG cockpit. On the website, you can see some pictures, but they REALLY do not al all give an impression of what the cockpit really looks and feels like, since the awesome lighting cannot be seen in the pictures. For those of you who are interested, the simulator is located in Belgium, near Brussels. For detailed information, see http://www.brugesaircollege.beThanks to PMDG, I was able to understand most of the procedures and to localise all the buttons. Lots of amateur customers, they told me, were PMDG users :-)Please do not let the low prices (see website) fool you. This is an extremely impressive project and anyone who's interested and has the chance, I advise you: GO AND SEE THIS!!! Dirk

[Guest _sebastian_]

Hi Dirk, that looks very impressive at the price. Do you happen to know what software the simulator is based on?And do you know if it is possible to step into the simulator immediately without pre-course fees?/sebastian

[Guest captain_dirk]

Hello Sebastian,I don't know what software the simulator is based on, but I am sure it's good software, since the simulator was very sensitive and the simulator was controlled by 8 parallel computers. The visuals are microsoft flightsimulator 2004. I think they also used project magenta. You dont't need to pay any fees for training in advance. You just step by and make a flight, whether you're an amateur or professional. One of the instructors is a 737 pilot and they give you very good directions. You have to book in time as their schedule as very occupied. Here is a link to an article with nice pictures of the lighting.http://www.aerobel.be/indekijker/2004/bruges_air_college/Dirk

[Guest _sebastian_]

>Here is a link to an article with nice pictures of the>lighting.>>http://www.aerobel.be/indekijker/2004/bruges_air_college/Looks very good indeed. I'm Danish and not proficient in flemish at all, but Belgium is not to far away and I have a few friends in Brussels. The next time I go there I will make sure to book an hour or two in the sim in advance.Thanks for a very interesting link.Regards,Sebastian

[Guest captain_dirk]

The simulator is near Bruges, at the west-coast of Belgium. It's about an hour drive from Brussels, but worth it. I booked 2 hours as well and you'll need them. Dirk