Full Motion Airbus A320 Simulator

[Christopher Low 5,359]

As promised, here is the report of my experience in a full motion Airbus A320 simulator in Manchester, together with a handful of photographs of myself and my cousin, Carl. For those of you who do not know what I look like, I am the person in the last two photos. The camera in Carl's mobile phone is better quality than that in the "hand me down" phone that I use

 

Christmas presents are few and far between for me these days, and I am rarely surprised by any of them. However, last year was an exception. I was very surprised to receive a voucher for a 30 minute session on a full motion flight simulator in Manchester. I subsequently discovered that my cousin (Carl) also received a voucher. Since anyone who has paid to use the simulator can bring up to two friends to observe or take part in the experience (there are two jump seats behind those of the captain and first officer), we combined our vouchers to get a full 60 minute session for both of us at the same time.

We arrived only just in time on the day! Google maps sent us to the wrong location, and we spent over half an hour frantically trying to find the correct one! Fortunately, this did not seem to be a problem for the friendly guys at Simulator Adventures (74 Broadway, Salford Quays, Manchester). We received a warm welcome, and were invited to take a seat in the simulator lounge (complete with authentic Airbus A330 seats). We were offered tea or coffee, and our host explained the upcoming flightsim experience. We were then introduced to our instructor (Will), who is a recently qualified Airbus A320 pilot. He asked us if we had any preferences for the simulation (Manchester and Edinburgh in our case), and whether we wanted to do a full take off, circuit and landing (we did).

We were then taken through to the simulator itself, and our host (Stewart) gave us a quick safety briefing (the stairs to the cockpit retract when you are inside, so you do not want to exit at the end of the session before the stairs have returned to their proper position)! I noticed that the outside of the cockpit had two signs on it. One of these was SKALARKI ELECTRONICS, which instantly made me realise that this was a similar Airbus A320 cockpit to the one that I had seen at the 2019 Cosford Flightsim Show. The other was DRZEWIECKI, and Stewart explained that they use the airport addons from this developer in their simulator. For the record, I did ask him how this name is supposed to be pronounced, but he admitted that he was as clueless as me regarding that!

It was now time to enter the simulator. Carl climbed the steps first, as he was going to be the first guinea pig. I waited at the door until he had settled himself into the captain's seat, and then I sat down in the jump seat behind Will (so that I could take photos of Carl as he was operating the controls). I had a quick look out of the windows at this point, and the airport scenery looked very familiar. I then realised that the software being used was P3D (I do not know the exact version), and that I was looking at a rendition of UK2000 Manchester Xtreme. Being the modest chap that I am, I did mention at this point that I am a UK2000 beta tester

The aircraft was cold and dark when we entered the cockpit, so Will now started to bring it to life. He explained the procedure, and let Carl operate the switches and dials to get a feel for the experience of being a pilot. Slowly, the aircraft came alive, and it was fascinating to see all of this working in a proper cockpit with 3D buttons and switches, and high resolution display screens. I have seen stuff like this in my PMDG 737 many times, but there is a massive difference between seeing it all happen in a virtual cockpit on your monitor screen, and actually sitting inside a real cockpit. Now I know how Gerrard feels during every flight

Carl was then instructed to input part of the flightplan and fuel calculations into the FMC. I was particularly interested in this, as I find entering the data into the FMC of my PMDG 737 to be a big part of the thrill of flight simulation. I noticed some subtle differences in format between the Boeing and Airbus data entries (like EGCC/EGCC line selected as one for the departure and arrival airports in the Airbus FMC, rather than separately in the case of the Boeing). Once again, this was all displayed in crisp, high resolution textures that were very pleasing to the eye. Texture resolution is a big thing for me in flight simulation, and the various screen displays in this Airbus cockpit were top notch.

After a few more settings were made on the MCP, it was time for pushback. This was when the FULL MOTION experience began! Sitting in front of my PC at home with a joystick in my hand (yes, I know....Boeings do not have joysticks, but that is another story) and looking at a 24" widescreen monitor, I get exactly zero feel for the movement of the aircraft. Not so here. Even though I was expecting it, I still jumped slightly when I felt it move! The aircraft pushed back and to the left from Gate 12, and then Carl was assigned the responsibility to taxi the plane to runway 23R using the tiller.

Ah, yes. The tiller. That method of controlling the nosewheel that an AutoRudder user like myself has never had to deal with. To his credit, Carl did manage to start getting a feel for it after a sequence of military (left/right) movements at first. There seems to be a slight delay in the response of the tiller, so I suspect that lots of practice would be needed to operate it consistently well. Stewart himself did mention afterwards that it took him a week to master this! For the record, the feel of the plane moving on the ground was very convincing.

When we reached the runway, I imagined ATC telling us to "taxi into position and hold". I know that this is no longer the correct terminology in the UK, but I prefer it  We stopped on the runway centreline, and Will explained to Carl what was going to happen during the take off sequence and climb out. I should point out here that I had noticed the lack of autogen trees and buildings in the surrounding countryside when sat at the gate, but the take off confirmed what I had been thinking from the start. In short....the simulator uses default P3D scenery. However, that is a separate issue that I will address at the end of this report. For now, it was time to "light the fires", and kick those tyres into action!

Carl was instructed to smoothly increase power to 50% until the thrust was stabilised, and then increase it again until he felt two "clicks". Quite an interesting procedure, as the PMDG 737 tutorial seems to indicate that there is an actual TO/GA button on the thrust levers in the Boeing plane (which I had assumed automatically pushes the thrust levers forward to the correct position)? I have no idea, since I use the "hidden clickspot on the MCP just below the course knob" to initiate TO/GA in my Boeing 737-600

Of course, this was the moment when the full motion effects started to earn their money. As the thrust levers were moved forward, I was pushed back into my seat as the plane started to accelerate down the runway. One hundred knots.....V1.....rotate.....V2, and we were airborne! Once again, the full motion hydraulics created a very good impression of a real world take off. It really did feel like we were climbing out! It was at this point that I took a quick photo of the scenery out of the right window, and confirmed that default P3D scenery was being used. Whilst disappointed, I just accepted it, and concentrated on the incredibly realistic physical experience.

The climb out seemed quite steep at first, but then I have a habit of not quite reaching the 15 degree pitch angle in my 737 that the flight directors want me to be at, so maybe Carl was teaching me how it should be done! I did not check the departure path that Will had selected for the quick circuit of the airport, but I suspect that it was the SANBA departure for jet aircraft, which means a sharp turn right, and then left through 180 degrees to avoid flying directly over the town of Knutsford, Cheshire. In other words, Carl had to learn how to follow the flight directors very quickly, as those turns are not shallow. He has never used a flight simulator like I have, so he did a creditable job after adjusting to the feel of the flight stick.

I should pause here to say that this simulator uses authentic Airbus flight sticks. Whilst they were purchased for a bargain basement price, £1500 each is not exactly cheap! However, they were worth every penny. The control and sensitivity is perfect. Being a right hander, I was concerned that I would not be able to control it all that well with my left hand, but that proved not to be the case. It felt really fluid and accurate, which I guess is what you would expect from a controller that normally costs 50,000 Euros!!

After flying the downwind leg, Will set the aircraft up for the approach and landing sequence whilst Carl concentrated on the sharp left turn to line up with runway 23R. All phases of the flight were conducted with the autopilot disengaged, but the autothrottle was active (which I think is normal for the Airbus A320). Therefore, Carl just had to concentrate on keeping the aircraft on the glideslope with subtle adjustments of the pitch and yaw. I noticed when approaching the runway that it was a lot more difficult to determine the alignment of the nose of the aircraft with the centre of the runway when compared to my PC approaches in the PMDG 737. I assume that this is because an adjustment needs to be made for being "off centre" in a real 3D cockpit, rather than looking at a flat screen. Whatever the case, Carl's final approach was slightly to the left of the runway. His flare at the "Retard" callout was not quite enough, so the landing was slightly heavy. However, he was on the runway! Those hydraulics worked their magic when the thrust reversers were engaged (the feeling of being pushed forward in my seat was very significant), and we slowly rolled to a stop.

Now it was my turn to wear the captain's uniform

Will reset the simulator for a runway 06 departure at Edinburgh while I switched seats with Carl and buckled up for business. The seat moves back and to the side to enable easy access, so I moved it forward into a comfortable position with respect to the rudder controls, and also a clear view of the MFA and ND. We started on the runway this time, so I prepared for take off with my left hand resting on the flight stick, and my right hand on the thrust levers. When we were cleared for take off (by Will), I advanced the thrust levers to 50% (I would really like a set of these for my PC at home), and then moved them further forward until I felt the "two clicks" that Will had indicated was TO/GA mode. It should be noted at this point that I have never used rudder controls in my life, not even a couple of keys on my keyboard. Since I always fly in calm weather (a limitation that I have imposed on myself for framerate reasons on the "less than top end" PCs that I have used for flight simulation over the years), subtle adjustments with the joystick in AutoRudder mode have always been sufficient to stay on the runway centreline. That being the case, controlling the lateral movement of the aircraft with foot pedals was a new experience.....and those rudder pedals are quite stiff!

A short time later I pulled back on the flight stick, and we were climbing into the Scottish skies! As expected, I made the same slight mistake as I quite often do at home....I did not quite rotate to the 15 degree pitch angle indicated by the flight directors. However, I adjusted quickly, and started to enjoy the superb feel of that amazing flight stick. Will retracted the flaps, and soon we were making a right turn towards the Pentland Hills. The sensory experience when banking the plane was incredibly realistic. I commented earlier about my disappointment regarding the default P3D scenery, but to be honest I was too busy concentrating on the vertical and horizontal lines on the MFA to even think about looking outside! Very soon I was making another right turn for the final approach to runway 06. I think I was doing a pretty good job of keeping the aircraft stable. I was smoothly following the movements of those flight director lines (as opposed to suddenly reacting to them), and I think that Will noticed this, as he said that he could tell that I was a sim pilot At least, I hope it was a compliment

I managed to keep the plane aligned with the runway all the way to touchdown, although (as explained earlier) it was a bit more difficult to determine the exact alignment in the physical cockpit when compared to the virtual one. However, when it came to the flare, I did the opposite to Carl. I over pitched slightly, resulting in the aircraft "floating" just above the runway. Nevertheless, Will assured me that we were fine, and the eventual touchdown seemed pretty good to me. I activated those thrust reversers again, and tried to pull my face back from the windshield (joke) while using the rudder pedals to stay near the centreline. I made a bit of a mess of disengaging the thrust reversers (a consequence of normally using Button 3 on my joystick for this task), but we rolled to a stop with plenty of runway to spare.

We had a little bit of time left in the session after that, so Will set me up for a quick circuit of Hong Kong's old Kai Tak airport, and the famous checkerboard approach and landing on runway 13. The departure and flight around the bay was nominal (as they say in the space launch industry), and very soon I was flying over the city on final approach. However, I had forgotten that this was a VISUAL approach, so when Will switched off the flight directors just before the turn, panic mode was on the horizon! I had no idea exactly when to start banking to the right! However, I managed to handle the turn pretty well, although I was slightly to the right and slightly too high when I approached the threshold. A couple of small adjustments later, and we were touching down on one of the most famous runways in the world.

Will then turned us off the runway, and asked me to taxi the plane to the stand.....with the tiller.

Ah, yes. The tiller. That exotic piece of equipment that looks easy to use, but proved to be anything but. The section of taxiway parallel to the runway was relatively easy (I even negotiated a small "kink" in it without any problem). Unfortunately, the final sequence involved a 45 degree turn to the right, followed by a quick turn to the left to line up at the gate. This proved to be beyond the capabilities of a tiller rookie like myself, so I ended up fish tailing from left to right in rather embarrassing fashion! I really need to return one day for some extended tuition 🙂

That was our 60 minute session completed. I took quite a few photographs of Carl in the captain's seat, and also the various switches and displays on the Airbus flight deck. I have attached some of these to this report. Carl apparently took some video footage of me in the seat (in addition to more photos), so you may get to see this at some point

Now to the situation regarding the terrain scenery. I mentioned to Stewart that I was a bit surprised (and disappointed) with the P3D default scenery, and he told me that his intention at the start was to get better quality scenery addons, including the ORBx TrueEarth GB (and presumably Netherlands and other areas) photoscenery packages for the simulator. Frankly, this experience deserves it. Even if the autogen trees and buildings in TrueEarth GB were disabled (after all, a completely fluid experience is essential for a full motion flight simulator), the scenery outside the aircraft would still be a massive improvement over default. The problem here is that ORBx have apparently refused to budge with respect to the cost of £2300 per addon for their commercial packages. Frankly, this is ridiculous. They cannot expect a small company like Simulator Adventures to fork out over two grand for each scenery addon they use. They would be out of business before they could blink.

I am hoping that ORBx change their minds regarding this. I would have thought that having their name plastered all over the simulator (plus having their scenery on display for everyone who pays for the full motion experience) would be enough for them to reconsider. After all, they are not getting a penny by refusing to negotiate...

I would like to thank Stewart and Alan Russell for the warm welcome given to us on the day, and to Will for being such an excellent and friendly flight instructor

NOTE: I did mention to Stewart that there is another alternative available for UK photoscenery......VFR Real Scenery NexGen 3D by JustFlight. He responded by saying that they had already tested this (after purchasing the normal license for it), but they had an issue with the simulator crashing to desktop (which sent the motion haywire), so they had to abandon this option.

 

https://www.mediafire.com/view/f3h1o22dllzrhuz/IMG_20211207_125835.jpg/file

https://www.mediafire.com/view/5osstd9ajyehcx9/IMG_20211207_131330.jpg/file

https://www.mediafire.com/view/xdfsu9i7iv9ic3b/IMG_20211207_132330.jpg/file

https://www.mediafire.com/view/hv8cxey3ojcd8c9/IMG-20211212-WA0003.jpg/file

https://www.mediafire.com/view/g32kx4d7gn84495/IMG-20211212-WA0004.jpg/file

 

 

Edited December 12, 2021 by Christopher Low

[out 769]

33 minutes ago, Christopher Low said:

I did ask him how this name is supposed to be pronounced, but he admitted that he was as clueless as me regarding that!

An awesome report, Chris!
Thanks for sharing it with us.

As for 'Drzewiecki', I have read it for you. 😉

 

[Greggy_D 936]

Fantastic report, Christopher!  Thank you for taking us along on your ride.  I will have to put this on my bucket list now.

Merry Christmas!

[micstatic 4,321]

excellent report.  Needless to say, we are all jealous

[virtualstuff 759]

Great report sounds like a lot of fun, thanks for sharing 😎

Edited December 13, 2021 by awf

[Iadbound 211]

Sounds like a great experience.  I got to use a full motion 737 this summer, and would really like to try an A320 simulator too -- especially since I fly Airbus much more often in the sim.

[pedrotrindade 335]

Thanks for sharing your amazing experience, Chris.

[TuFun 437]

Cool experience Chris!  I had an opportunity in the right seat of a KC135 full-motion simulator and pilot of the B-52 full-motion simulator.  The controls on the B-52 where surprisingly heavy!  Also a F-4 Phantom simulator chancing a UFO. No PC's back then to practice.

[micstatic 4,321]

45 minutes ago, Rob_Ainscough said:

Must of been an awesome experience Chris, thanks for sharing.  So did it "stutter" 😉

Do you happen to know if they were using P3D multi-channel (multiple computers) with genlock to managed display sync?

Cheers, Rob.

 

hah right.  "Excuse me Mr. Instructor.  Can you please push shift+Z so I can see the FPS and vram usage?"

[alex86 192]

Thanks for sharing your experience with the community! If you’re interested in using a tiller with your current FS setup, check out cat3 design, they have an awesome plug-and-play tiller that really enhances your simulator experience. Not sure if I’m allowed to post links here but google cat3 design tiller in case you’re curious to get one. 

[Christopher Low 5,359]

I have asked the question, Rob. I will provide an update here if I get an answer.

[Christopher Low 5,359]

This is the response I received, Rob.....

• One PC runs P3D, ProSim and the Skalarki profiler
• One PC runs the instrument screens
• One PC runs the overhead and pedestal
• They use an Nvidia RTX 2080 with 3 outputs
• They use something called Fly Elise to warp the visuals

I am not sure if that completely answers your question, but it is interesting to know!

[neilhewitt 494]

2 minutes ago, Christopher Low said:

This is the response I received, Rob.....

• One PC runs P3D, ProSim and the Skalarki profiler
• One PC runs the instrument screens
• One PC runs the overhead and pedestal
• They use an Nvidia RTX 2080 with 3 outputs
• They use something called Fly Elise to warp the visuals

I am not sure if that completely answers your question, but it is interesting to know!

Pretty standard setup for a cockpit like that, although it's unusual to have a single P3D machine powering three views (though IIRC it's stock scenery, so maybe not so much as if it were TrueEarth etc) and you're more likely to see Wideview or P3D MultiChannel in use to spread the load. 

@Christopher Low FlyElise NG is the brand for a company making tools to design and operate projector-based solutions. Their primary software is Immersive Display Pro which does the warping and blending necessary to make projectors go on non-flat screens, but they also do Immersive Calibration Pro to help you set the warp up (you can use cameras etc to make the process easy), Immersive Designer Pro which is a neat tool for basically doing 3D CAD designs of projection setups, and Immersive LCD Pro which does for LCDs what Display Pro does for projectors. Some pretty cool stuff - I use their software for my projector display. 

[Christopher Low 5,359]

Skalarki Electronics Ltd is the company that builds the A320 cockpit, and the Profiler appears to be some kind of software that works with it.

Edited December 16, 2021 by Christopher Low

[Christopher Low 5,359]

Here is a photo of the "departure lounge" at Simulator Adventures in Manchester with those authentic Airbus A330 seats...

https://www.mediafire.com/view/6m34pnihiwjbl8n/reception.jpg/file

 

Edited December 18, 2021 by Christopher Low