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Curtis L. Olson
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Iowa State UniversityMark Anderson (manders1@iastate.edu)About a year ago (March 1999), the ISU Aerospace Engineering dept purchased an PC-based Aviation Training Device or PC-ATD from ELITE Personal Simulators (www.flyelite.com PCATD Model PI-142) and Precision Flight Controls. This package is an FAA certified instrument trainer. It is my understanding that one can log a limited number of hours on this system (with a CFI present) toward an instrument rating. Our major use for this simulator is as a tool to allow students to relate what they derive on paper to what actually happens in an aircraft. The ELITE simulator has excellent detail on the instrument panel, but the scenery window leaves a lot to be desired. The sky is solid blue, the ground is solid green, and there is absolutely no terrain variation whatsoever. With this window so small, it is difficult to "feel" the orientation of the aircraft if you aren't used to looking at an instrument panel. We want to implement FlightGear into this system because of its superior scenery generation and its use of the LaRCsim FDM. Eventually, we envision using the network capability of FlightGear to create multiple views for the pilot. We also plan on modifying the FDM to use different aircraft models. There is also a budget for purchasing the materials to build a cockpit around the entire systems once it is completed.
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