Peter Cos - Flightdeck Solutions, Ltd

FDS-B747-FBPT to Dusseldorf!

2011-11-29T14:24:00.000-08:00

B747 FBT to Dusseldorf

Flightdeck Solutions has been developing a great relationship with iPilot and we delivered a B747 to Dusseldorf. I headed to Germany on the 15^th of November to met the iPilot Sim Technician Martin.

We had the pleasure of working with Martin at our facility while assembling the FBT in Newmarket. Martin and I arranged to meet at the airport on my arrival. We scheduled the delivery of the crates to show up at 7am. We had to bring the parts up to the fourth floor using the elevator and stairs. Once upstairs we started the assembly of the B747 FBT. We started with the platform on the first day after moving all the parts upstairs. Next day was the MIP and pedals along with the nose sectional and interior liners. Third day was the overhead, carpet and seats. We also started connecting computers and assembling the visuals. Fourth day was test flights and finalizing switch and LED assignments. The last day was the installation of the Business Class section iPilot had arranged to install behind the FBT. This was a great trip to Germany, I usually only transit through Frankfurt Airport and don’t get to see Germany.

Here is the website for iPilot: http://www.flyipilot.com/ , please take a look.

Flightdeck Solutions looks forward to working with iPilot and their projects. Wolfram, Simone and Martin have been great to work with. We wish them a great Grand Opening in Dusseldorf this December.

Steve

B777 FBOT Integration in Hong Kong - Field Report By Steve Cos

2011-10-18T08:47:00.000-07:00

Once again I was off to do an installation of one of our B777 Fixed Based Trainers. This is our 5th complete B777 FBT. This trip took me to downtown Hong Kong and to our customer Asia Pacific Simulators. James and Gitta were waiting for me on my arrival into Hong Kong. In my travels I have accumulated some upgrade points and was able to fly Business Class both ways from/to Vancouver. This makes the journey a little more bearable when doing these “long haul” flights. Flying on Air Canada and a B777-300ER is also a bonus. I enjoy flying on B777’s.

Assembly started with the disassembly of the forward platform assembly. James was able to bring everything up to his 15th floor facility but unable to get the forward platform in the elevator. I had to break it down to 15 pieces to get it upstairs. Then with the platform assembly upstairs, we put the complete platform together making a full day of that. 2nd day was the MIP and interior liners getting the nose parts ready for the 3rd day. After the nose was assembled, the overhead, roof liners and the remaining trim pieces went in. Then we started with the power up of systems and computers. Getting the single PC for the Sim-Avionics, a separate PC for the VGA clocks and Observer CDU. Installing software on the FSX PC for radio’s and transponder, also calibrating flight controls. I was able to meet Don, one of James crew members and a knowledgeable IT technician. Don will be the “Sim Tech” at Asia Pacific. It was good working with him. We spent a full day going over systems and start-up and shutdown of the Sim and covered many of the features in the B777 and the Sim-Avionics software. James has a “visual expert” coming in to do his magic with the curved screen. The screen was installed when I got there and looked great. One thing missing in Hong Kong is your favourite DIY store, they don’t seem to have the likes of Home depot or Lowes. Getting supplies is a bit of a challenge, but if you know your way around like James does you will get the supplies you need.

One of the things James mentioned to me was the great view from his apartment in Tung Chung. Well he was right! He lives on the 43rd floor in a building that is directly across from the airport. So mornings were mine to watch aircraft taking off on Rwy 07L before heading off to the office. This leads up to the daily commute to downtown. I live 5 minutes from the shop in Newmarket, this was a 45-50 min ride on the MTR (subway). Using an “Octopus” pass to use the well planned public transit system we did the trip each way daily. I was also able to try the ferry, trolleys and double decker buses. We also used the tram to get to the “Peak” to get a great view of the downtown.

We look forward to working with James and we are awaiting his webpage to add that link for everyone to see. The popularity of the B777 is on the rise with FBT’s in Perth http://flightcity.com.au/ and Zurich http://www.simair.ch/ . Thanks to James, Gitta and Don for their assistance during the assembly and hospitality during my stay in Hong Kong. Great working with you all.

Steve

Did Someone Say Road Trip?

2011-09-12T09:09:00.001-07:00

A few weeks ago an email arrived asking if we would like to head up to Maurice B’s home and fly his simulator? An afternoon of fun, a BBQ and talk on all subjects related to FS and sim building. One of the more amazing things about planning a get together like this is to have 6 busy people all have a Saturday off to be able to attend. It worked! So Peter and I arranged with Jack P. And Dave E. to meet us at the FDS shop and sort out our rides. Angus W. met us up there and the flying commenced. Maurice took us through a walk around and showed us his sliding platform assembly, computer rack and visuals. With FSX up and running and 3 projectors on, we got to see Maurice’s amazing visual setup. This of course gets everyone planning, thinking and figuring out how to do this in our own setups. Seeing is believing I have to say, from seeing Ivar’s 225 degree video’s and tutorial at the FDS Open House last year you get the full effects and the hard work that goes into making a great 225 degree system. Nice work Maurice! We started taking turns at the controls and the spectators were hanging on to the back of the aluminum shell as the aircraft started making turns after departure from LOWI Innsbruck Airport. Maurice and Carole had a nice little “pilot lounge” set up so we could feast on some finger foods and a well stocked bar fridge to keep us going. The Sim-Avionics’ B737NG suite was working great and Angus was putting the aircraft through its paces. Angus is great pilot to have in your sim as he is very patient, explains things clearly and makes a great sim fly like the real thing! It is amazing to watch. 2 short video’s of Angus and Jack flying near LOWI are linked below:

Video 1

Video 2

Visit us on FaceBook for more pictures of this great set up!

Later we headed upstairs for dinner and had some good food, drinks and great conversations of ongoing builds, software, scenery and an amazing desert. Maurice and Carole looked after a great meal. Then back to the sim of course. Maurice had just completed his FDS Overhead and was awaiting a few gauges. Once he gets his gauges installed he is planning on installing the OH to get to the next level of immersion in his home built sim. Having all the switches, annuciators of an OH adds to the full “cold and dark”, walk in and sit down and start an aircraft. Battery, APU, Bleed air and Engine Starts become a procedure to learn and Checklists to follow. Maurice had already built his linked yokes and pedals, motorized throttle and has a full FDS pedestal in place. The OH will help finish up the last few items he needs. So for today’s flying we had the OH mounted on a test stand with remote access to the engine starts. We finished off the evening with a few plans to come back, Angus with a good friend that is not able to fly right now. He will have a blast flying in the B737NG. Looking forward to hear that visit goes. Maurice and AJck were setting up for Kia Tak approaches as we said our goodbyes. As I pulled out of the driveway at Maurice’s I saw Jack and Maurice carrying Jack’s OH box into the house. I think Jack was planning on snuggling up with his FDS OH last night. Sweet dreams Jack!

SimAir.CH Grand Opening - Saturday May 14!

2011-05-14T18:53:00.000-07:00

First day of the SimAir Open House in Mettmenstetten, Switzerland. I was at the facility at 8:30am to help with a few items on the MBB 105 helicopter.
Some final clean up and started the PC's for the day's events. The crowds started rolling in exactly at 10am, like clockwork. I think that is a Swiss thing? We ended up doing flights from Zurich to Geneva and back. Added a wood bench for Business Class to allow more people to see the visuals at the right level. At times there were 12-15 in the Sim room watching. Lots of good comments on the FBT, software and visuals. Many people showed up I think because of the rainy weather here this weekend. That works in our favour. Gian had soft drinks, beer and Champagne. Some snack foods out and a video running on a large LCD TV with a United B777 video. I will bring my Air Canada B777 video tomorrow, must have watched today's video 4 times today. Many people rotated trough the FDS B777 FBT and the helicopter. Gian and his crew were busy all day flying, answering questions and having a good time. They were tired at the end. It was a long day and we expect to do the same on Sunday. If you are able to come down it would be worth the visit. If not you can always book time online from the SimAir website http://www.simair.ch for an upcoming date and time in the simulator. Gian has even made access for his customers in wheel chairs. He slides the Captain's seat out of the Sim and has a ramp and assists with getting you in place in the Captain's position. There are many virtual pilots out there that can enjoy their hobbies without boundaries. This was a nice feature that was put to use today.

I also had the pleasure of meeting more FDS customers and future customers as I made my way around the SimAir facility all day. It is nice to meet so many people with the same passion for aviation and simulation. The simulators have come a long way from the early days and is always improving.
Software and hardware have changed what you can build on your own and what companies like SimAir can provide for the virtual pilots out there. It is a truly amazing part of the hobby. I didn't see any big issues for people with the visuals, but people were enjoying the large screen and the Swiss scenery. Definitely adds to the immersion of flying in a full size simulator.

Looking forward to tomorrow, will probably see many return for another chance to fly along with many others!

Steve

SIMAIR.CH Grand Opening! May 14-15, 2011

2011-05-13T17:34:00.001-07:00

I arrived at Zurich Airport at 10:45 AM and cleared Passport Control in 3 minutes. Located the Baggage Claim and low and behold my suitcase came out first with its Priority tag on it. I was out the door and in the arrival hall in record time. Gian was there in minutes and off we went to the SimAir facility. Gian mentioned the Sim had been running daily for 4-5 hours and was running well. Visuals just need final "tweaks" (where is a good "tweaker" when you need him? I think I know) to be perfect. I was impressed how they have turned out since my last visit a month ago. Also found out somebody had been calling looking for me several times. I finally found out it was one of our long time B777 customers Don M. He was in town on business and it worked out perfectly for him. We made arrangements for him to come over and meet up at the SimAir Facility. I was looking forward to meeting Don and having him sit in the B777 FBT. After several circuits and general testing the verdict was in. It is a pleasure to fly. Great to fly! That was all I needed to hear. Don had to leave and head back to Zurich. It was great to meet him after years of emails. Mark had the pleasure of meeting him via Skype as well. Here is a picture of Don and I in the B777 FBT.

It's late and I need to rest up for a busy day Saturday. More to follow.

Steve

B777 FBPT- Sim-Air - Zurich

2011-04-18T10:48:00.001-07:00

Have the pleasure once again to work on a "Special Project" with one of our customers. This time with Gian in Zurich, Switzerland at SimAir http://www.simair.ch/ and we are installing a B777 FBPT. The FBPT was shipped in early March and has been waiting for the FDS Team to show up and install the Sim in the new location. The first few days are mostly assembly, power and wiring connections. Gian had his curved screen installed first, projectors (beamers) and electrical wiring. This gave everyone time to do their jobs before we took over the room with the massive 777 FBPT.

I have been driving a Smart car with the SimAir logo on it and getting back and forth to the Bed and Breakfast, to Gian's house where I have been enjoying home cooked meals prepared by his lovely wife, Caroline. Dishes from Switzerland and Italy. Great food!

Assembly is almost complete, Mark arrived on Saturday to do final integration of Sim-A and the FDS Hardware. Several test flights and circuits. Motorized throttle working well. Several Autolands to confirm everything is functioning properly with the Sim-Avionics. Mark has done a great job getting the last few items on our daily checklist. We have also been working with Ivar Hestnes and the Warpalizer software to complete the visuals. Great combination of Hardware, Software and Visuals. A complete package. More pictures to follow.

Special thanks to Gian for his hospitality and dedication to his amazing project! We also wish Gian success and a great "Grand Opening" on May 14-15.

Steve

2011-01-29T08:15:00.000-08:00

The B777 FBPT seems to be a common sight at FDS this past while and another is taking shape this week. We will be happpy to see this one landing in Zurich, Switzerland and open to the public within a few short months. More on this once our Customer is ready to unveil.
Pictured in this shot is Shawn, Bob, Bill and Hassan working on various elements of the device. I am always amazed at how these devices "magically appear" on the floor. The are built over 6-7 weeks in sections of course, DSTD, Overhead, Pedestal, Platform etc but they take the full form of a device in less than a week. The prep work prior to "final assembly" is weeks and weeks as you can imagine. We should do a count on how many pieces make up one of these devices.
Also in the picture you can make out an A320 FBPT (lower left) as well as a Single Seat B737NG setup that is ready to ship to California. Many folks don't realize it but when they are flying on line they might be lined up for take off behind a very famous celebrity.... Who knew?
All the best to everyone!
PC

PC: If folks have any topics of discussion that they would like to see in this blog, I am happy to hear your thoughts.

Guest Blog : Jon Boe - FDS Team

2010-12-05T16:55:00.000-08:00

Hi guys,

Last evening a customer in Fort Collins had me come up and run his B747 sim for a group of 120 teachers from his sons' school at a Christmas party. I used the checkerboard approach at the old Kai Tak airport for the experience and had over 20 couples avail themselves to the opportunity.

What was of interest is that over half of the "pilot not flying" announced that they felt tinges of airsickness during the experience. Not too surprising as the pilot flying did some wild gyrations trying to make the turn to the runway. Lots of crashes, splashes, and a few landings. Fun was had by all.

For those of you who don't know the configuration, it is a fully enclosed B747-400 FBPT with a 180 degree wrap around display using three copies of Sol7 with edge blending.

The visual experience imparts a real sense of motion and I had several asked me how much the simulator moved during flight.
JB

Sim Fest 2010 Guest Blog S Cos - Final Report

2010-11-07T05:35:00.000-08:00

Completed our flight into Bangkok, Thailand as WF1039. It was my turn to be Captain and Mark operated as F/O on this sector. Ralph handled the Dispatching and provided the necessary paperwork, weather, airport charts for our landing. Following the proper procedures we did our call for Clearance and Pushback

from the gate. Completed our engine starts and checklists. Taxied to Rwy 25 for departure following QF25 with Matthew Sheil's B747 simulator from Australia. Runway heading with a right turn to 90 degrees to join the airway and enroute to Bangkok as filed. Climbed out to FL370 and Mark and I planned our approach into the airport based on winds and listening to the aircraft ahead. Ralph showed up with a pizza and a drink for a quick lunch before our landing. With a "push the Call button when you are done" so we could have the food trays taken back to the galley.
Nice touch Ralph and great meal service! While enroute we switched over to Rangoon Control to find Gary controlling and providing proper spacing for the Approach controllers. Smashing job Gary! Vectors for the active with our flight heading around the airport and the Approach controller squeezing us in for the ILS. Only problem was no ILS for landing so some quick calculations by Mark and I took over for the landing phase of the flight.
Arrived safely and made our way to the gate after our smooth landing (so I was told).Then followed the Shutdown Checklist and completed our paperwork for the next crew. This type of flying is the best way to get the full immersion of a simulator, ATC and real world procedures take it to the next level. If you haven't tried FS and Squawkbox, you are missing the last elements of "as close as it gets" flying. It was nice to see Scott W, Dave E, Ed D and Axel G show up on the Live Chat while we were flying, sorry if I missed anyone but it is busy in the Flightdeck. Thanks for following along so far. 5 more flights to go.
Final report from the Sim today. Gary and Mark at the controls with Gary as Captain. Heading for Sydney after following the original route from 10 years ago on the first World Flight. It has fun to attend at Ralph W's sim and fly with the rest of the crew. It is amazing to see how the Simfest Team put the whole thing together with each person handling different parts of the daily operations. Ralph handling the logistics and doing the dispatching. Gary entering all the flightplans etc and setting up a network for an ATC center in Ralph's kitchen. Mark handling the software end for the aircraft. Plus many more elements to look after. It ran as smooth as clockwork. Very impressive.

Standard arrival into Sydney with a "under the bridge" approach and vectors to the airport with Gary at the controls. Several "Touch and Go's" after that and joining the circuit for the landing. It was great fun to show up and experience the World Flight/Simfest experience. Many thanks to Ralph and Barbara for their excellent hospitality. Meeting up with Mark and Gary again and learning more about flying the B737 was an added bonus! Also the people that popped in to fly and watch added to the whole experience. Nice to meet people with the same passion for aviation and Sim building. Looking forward to next year's event and wherever the World Flight route takes us!

Thanks for following along!

Sim Fest Report #2- S Cos Guest Blog

2010-11-06T16:36:00.000-07:00

WF1034 completed, Tel Aviv to Kuwait City. Mark Hastings was Captain with
myself as F/O. We have Craig and Tom flying now as WF1035 Kuwait City to
Dubai. The flights will continue till Sunday morning. Gary has been doing
all the Dispatching and creating Flightplans, charts and loadsheets. Ralph
has been a great host with regular visitors to the sim. Had the pleasure of
meeting an FDS customer Ed Donald who is just staring his B737 build.
Awaiting his Glareshield kit to go with his MIP/Main. Also seen Axel G. on
the Simfest Live Chat along with Pete offering comments and following
along.

More to come tomorrow with a full day of flying.

Steve

Sim Fest UK 2010 - Steve Cos Guest Blog Entry

2010-11-05T21:37:00.000-07:00

I received an open invitation to visit the UK for World Flight 2010. The
website is www.simfest.co.uk and flights have been running since Oct 31st
and following a Flight Schedule. Time is planned for crew changes,
refuelling and flight planning.

I arrived at Toronto CYYZ for my flight on Air Canada AC856 to London,
Heathrow. After an equipment change from a B767-300ER to a B777-200LR and a
slight delay we were off to LHR. Flight was smooth and uneventful (the way I
like it) and we arrived at 6:10am in London. I was met at the airport by
Ralph W. and it was nice to see a familiar face after meeting Ralph at the
FDS Open House in 2010. We headed to the simulator room at Ralph's. Got the
quick tour or the house, Gary sleeping in the TV room (night flights) and 2
crew members working their way to Zurich. Steve (Captain) and Jesper (F/O)
were preparing their holds and getting lined up for their arrival in to
Zurich. Nice smooth hand landing with full checklists and callouts thru the
flight. I am flying WF1034 with Mark from Sim-A as Captain. This flight is
Tel Aviv to Kuwait City. The B737 BBJ2 (B737-800) is Ralph's simulator model
for the World Flight allowing the range and fuel upload required on the
longer Pacific legs.

I'll report back after our flight and there is a webcam to watch if you have
a few minutes. The atmosphere here is serious for the flying with loads of
British humour. The laughs have been non stop, sort of like the flying!

Steve Cos

A320 FBPT Takes Starring Role in "Piche" Feature Film!

2010-10-19T05:19:00.007-07:00

You Tube Video:

Trailer

Back in September 2009 FDS was contracted to supply an Airbus Fixed Based Trainer to "Star" in a movie. This movie is called "Entre ciel et terre" in French (Between Sky and Ground in English).The movie is the story of Captain Robert Piche before, during and after the event. He was the Pilot in Command onboard an Air Transat Airbus A330 that developed a fuel leak while enroute to Lisbon from Toronto. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Air_Transat_Flight_236
While attempting to deal with a fuel imbalance the aircraft ran out of fuel.
Now Captain Piche is in command of a glider and planning an emergency landing at the nearest airport in the Azores.
I was accompanied by long time FDS customer and Sim expert Ron W. It was a good trip to Montreal with the FBT in the back of a truck and a quick stop at Jack's house to drop off his nose sectional and liner set. The movie set was setup with a green screen to allow for further film work for outside scenery while flying. The director was yelling “focus, focus” a lot. He had a 42” HD screen to look at though while the focus guy only had a 4-5” video screen. Interesting how they let the camera run continuously. We could watch the actual result as it happens as compared to the old days with film.
The sound engineer was not too happy with the director as he was yelling and talking a lot around and over the dialogue (lots of post production work for him). They all admitted though he is one of the best directors in Quebec. We were impressed with how coordinated and organized (small military
organization) the entire event was. Every day we had a scene list with all details – who does what, when and how. I never appreciated until now how long it takes to do a dialogue scene. Left side window – far and close then repeated each time for the right side and front shot plus each take to “get it right” – the “star” actor (Michel Cote) was a very cool guy and talked with us a lot. They all seemed to be a good mix of very professional crew members but also a group having a lot of fun. It was amazing to watch the lighting guys come up with tricks and solutions to all kinds of challenges.
Everything was in French although they all spoke English very well to us.
The movie was to be released in July 2010 in Quebec in French theatres. I have added a few links to the movie and we are watching for the movie to be released to DVD. We want to see the film no matter what language it is in.

Steve Cos

August, B737NG Setup and Sim-A!

2010-08-16T18:03:00.000-07:00

Hectic period here when normally we are enjoying a slight breather in August. Steve has been in Australia for the past ten days working on a B777 FBPT. We will get some shots posted on this one shortly as the FBPT and customers Visual setup are well teamed and really deliver.

While Steve has been away I have been focused on a B737NG FBPT working with Mark at Sim-A nailing down all sorts of details and test flying the sim. I have to admit that I have logged more hours in the past few weeks than I have al year! Best part? Really enjoyed flying this trainer as it was a real treat.

Sim-A has progressed so very well and the flight model that is integrated into the setup really shines. Smart move on Marks part not to try and chase a moving target" in the flight model department. By having a solid flight model in place (One that many people weighed in on!) he could tune the software to fly like a B737NG. Does it ever.

Also, experiencing all the amazing little sound tweaks like Packs turning and humming quietly in the background. Stall Warning test modes, All the warnings you can handle.

Bravo to Mark and thanks for the huge push. Steve had the guy part of the day and then I stole him the rest. Working two time zones and still cracking one-liners on skype!

Pleasure..

PC

GUEST BLOG!! Steve Cos At OSHKOSH

2010-08-02T08:44:00.001-07:00

Had the opportunity to attend Oshkosh to assist one of our customers. This customer had their custom dual seat trainer in the FAA hanger near the control tower. In their display they were showing the benefits of Data Link messages from ATC as an option to receive taxi, enroute and flightplan changes. The ability to receive and reply via Data Link could reduce the need to use radios for all communication. You would also be able to send the data to a printer to reduce the writing of the information and replying back to ATC word for word.

Heading to Oshkosh was a chance to experience one of aviations greatest fly-ins. The daily Airshow was great, warbirds buzzing the field including
P-51 Mustangs, Harvard's and even a Corsair. The event was also a chance to celebrate the 75th anniversary of the venerable DC-3. An amazing aircraft that brought air travel to the masses back in the 30's. I got to meet and shake hands with fellow Canadian Mikey McBryan from Buffalo Airways standing next to his DC-3. They flew in from Yellowknife NWT to be at the DC-3 Anniversary. Also had some time to walk thru some of the displays and see the Hondajet VLJ, Embraer Phenom 100 and 300 and numerous classic aircraft including DC4 and DC7. I was accompanied by my youngest son Travis who is almost 16 yrs old. He enjoyed himself and was a valuable assistant at the
hanger and on the long drive. Thanks for helping out Trav! Special thanks
to my brother Pete for letting me knock off another item on my "bucket list".

Farnborough 2010!

2010-07-21T19:02:00.000-07:00

The Biggest show of the year for the Aerospace Industry is in full swing over at Farnborough (UK).

Several new types rolled in and none other than Boeing's latest offering the B787. Andres Ramirez posted a fantastic shot of the B787 Flightdeck on www.airliners.net.

Worth looking at the many Farnborough pictures starting to appear on that popular site.

For the Civil Airliner Enthusiast getting a real glimpse of a new flightdeck is a real "Eye popper".

No exception here with the 787 layout. All sorts of new things to please the eye.

Just saying :)

Summer Heat - Pushing Forward!

2010-07-05T11:06:00.000-07:00

Hello to everyone!
It's been awhile since I have been on here and thought I should make a point of letting folks know that we are hard at things here.
We are just wrapping up another B737NG FBPT that is going into South America and have integrated all the new NG "Toys" in this piece.
We also just completed a B737NG Custom Demonstrator that will be used at OSH KOSH this year in a demonstration of future ATC Systems. Very cool setup that I know I would like to have!

Some pics here of the new MCP/EFIS parts. We will push to get these on the webpage.
We are preselling and with that a failry long list is shaping up here. Doing our best to push on production.

The new CDUs are now going into production so we are filling existing orders on these devices. Some folks are asking about the A320 version and that is an August item. It will be the latest A320 Variant with all the "bells and whistles" of course.
Very solid reaction to the new CDUs on the B737/747/777 side. Thanks to everyone for the confidence on this piece. We are pretty excited as you can imagine.
Development is continuing in house on some more exciting parts and we willl update as they go from design to "production ready".
Rudder pedals.. Almost forgot.. People asking about lead times. We are making one set a week usually as they are quite involved. All metal, built like absolute tanks!
Expect 6-8 weeks lead time for these. You can see them in the Custom Trainer.
Hope everyone is good. Will be back on here with some B737NG FBPT pics once we are all lit up with this unit.
PC

B777 FBPT - Inspection / Open House Prep

2010-06-04T06:54:00.000-07:00

Well, It arrived as fast as expected...

Deaadlines are always tough when you are assembling items that have thousands of pieces but the guys always seem to pull it off and make it happen.

While the Open House is a big part of our week here, the completion of another B777 FBPT was a primary focus for most of the team here.

Matt and Marco from the US were here on behalf of their company to inspect/sign off on the B777 FBPT. This is the second unit they have purchased. Lucky for FDS we have a customer here that is putting these units to very heavy duty use and feeding back to us. Matt has worked with us for several years in nailing down the specification for these unit and in the process helping us with all the subtle nuances of the flightdeck.

One of the long running jokes we have with our international customers is upon arrival when we are "on site" doing installations our guys are usually asked to wear ID Tags identifying us as "Foreign Nationals" and usually tagged as "Escort Required". While we fully understand the security issues involved with many of our customers we always swore we would make sure to repay those that come back to FDS. Marco and Matt were great sports about their "ID Tags".

Thanks guys!!!!

Open House - June 4/5 2010

2010-05-15T09:26:00.000-07:00

Very pleased to announce that we are going to open our doors for our friends, customers, suppliers and family on the evening of June 4th. We will host a small "meet and greet" on the 4th between 5PM-10PM.

For Saturday the 5th we are having an all day event that will feature presentations and discussion on a wide range of topics. The spaces are limited here as we can accomodate only so many seats/places in the facility. If you are intersted in adding your name (please be sure you are able to attend!) please email us.

We are expecting to have a complete B777 FBPT here that is due for shipment following the event. This unit will have Sim-Avionics running on one single computer and be flyable (all going to plan of course!) We recently shipped an identical unit and a picture is linked above.

Also to be shown at the event will be our new B737NG PRO-MX MCP/EFIS units, The new PRO-MX CDUs featuring VGA LCDS and All Metal Contstruction, New PRO-MX B737NG SSTD and more.

We have a really great list of attendees confirmed and can also confirm that Nat Crea, Ivar Hestnes and Jon Boe will be representing the FDS Team here! Really pleased to have all three of the new Team Members with us. Jon Boe has been with us before working on a large B747 project but Ivar and Nat are going to be with us for the first time.

Mark and Gary from Sim-Avionics will be in attendance and presenting, Brent is booked (confirming shortly) to be with us, Steve Cos will be presenting on many of the exciting projects/stories that have gone on behind the scenes, I will likely get a few words in of course.

I am super pleased to announce that we will have a special guest speaker for the Saturday event.

Joining us and speaking on his career as a Corporate Pilot and his own personal sim project will be AngusW. Angus has posted many videos and pictures of his fine project and will give us some insigths into his life in Aviation. Many thanks to Angus for blocking his time to be able to be with us.

That is it for now. Again, some limits on the number of attendees so please RSVP with us if yo uhave not already.

All the best to everyone!

Podcast - MyCockpit.org

2010-04-25T07:32:00.000-07:00

Folks,
I mentioned "Podcast" in my last entry and then totally forgot to discuss it!
I wanted to encourage people to give this thing a listen as it was a really great opportunity for FDS to cover off a great deal of information that is not readily apparent looking at our webpage.
I want to thank Vybhava and Matt over at mycockpit.org for approaching us on doing this podcast as it was very kind of them to put us in front of their ever growing group.

http://www.mycockpit.org/podcasts/final/Feature/MyCockpit_Feature_Interview_Peter_Cos_April_2010.mp3

FDS has grown and changed a lot over the years and we have done everything possible to maintain our foot in the "enthusiast" channel and push forward with product.
One of the things that became very clear to me is that a webpage cannot "tell the story" very well on product, integrity, caring and customer support. I will be working with a few people to "get out there" more and cover off our product in a better way.
We are not the lowest cost vendor out here but sometimes I think that we shortsell ourselves by not being really clear on all the FDS advantages. IBL panels are clearly one of these. Folks are buying "low cost" panels and once receiving them realizing that they have to create all the backlighting. On our IBL panel approach you simply plg in 5Volts to any of our panels and the backlighting is "ON" like any real aircraft panel. No kit, no glue, no experimenting..
Ask around on this. Our IBL customers always email back with excitement. My feeling is their expectations were met, likely exceeded.
PODCAST.. Sorry! Please do have a listen if you have not already, I think it really was my chance to talk directly to everyone and for those that know me this is not a tough thing for me to do.
OPEN HOUSE. Planning is going forward on this and we are going to have a small group in the shop/office with some pretty decent presentations.
More on this soon!
All the best to everyone!

http://www.mycockpit.org/podcasts/final/Feature/MyCockpit_Feature_Interview_Peter_Cos_April_2010.mp3

Sim-A Visit...

2010-04-22T11:38:00.000-07:00

Apologies for not being on here updating folks on things. Very hectic in the office/shop the past while.

We had the Sim-Avionics guys here for what was supposed to be a few days working on a B777 FBPT that is shipping this month. Mark and Gary flew here just prior to the European Airspace being shut down from the Icelandic Volcano. Naturally, we felt bad for them but... We put them to work. Hard work...

Always advantageous for software and hardware people to be in the same place as you can iron out so many things that do not always show up in the field. In this case Gary and Mark were able to work on the B777 as well as the the B737NG. Can't say enough about these guys and the work ethic. The guys spent long hours working on all sorts of elements and this really allowed our team to tie in deeper with them. Thanks Guys! Glad you got home ok finally.

On the FDS-B777-FBPT you can see the sheer size of this setup and how it dwarfs our shop! The B777 is quite wide in the flightdeck area and for those building the NG you realize fast how crammed into the NG you really are! That being said, the B777 has to be planned out to cover the extra width and height. Still very possible to fit in smaller areas but some pre-planning is required. This entire setup comes apart and still goes though normal doors.

We are building a second B777 to follow this unit and this will be ready for a small planned event at the shop in June.

Lots to talk about. Back on shortly!

Ok... I like BART!

2010-04-05T18:24:00.000-07:00

Our friends at Boeing have a dedicated website to showcase their "NewGen Tanker" aircraft based on the B767 platform. FDS has been involved in several of their key marketing initiatives.
Similar to the B737-P8A Trailer devised to tell the story on the P3-Orion replacement Aircraft ( http://www.flightdecksolutions.com/view_page.php?id=45 )
the NewGen Tanker group is going into High Gear to present the new aircraft program as well.
This highly informative webpage give the viewer the inside track on the aircraft, the systems and Boeing's rich history in Aviation Airborne Refueling.
FDS produced the Flightdeck element that resides next to the "Refueling Console" demonstrator. Exciting to see this Trailer going back out on the road all across the US.
Special thanks to HM for his support and confidence in FDS.
Tour Bart Here!

The BIG Question...

2010-04-02T09:50:00.000-07:00

My morning ritual is pretty static these days, I have a little one that I have to get to school in the morning and from there I am usually picking up my oldest one (Taylor, who works at the shop doing all sorts of tasks!) and getting into the office. Email consumes the bulk of my time and one of the most common questions we get is:

"How much is a B737NG FBPT???"

This question will arrive from everyone, everywhere etc.

One of the ways I try to answer this is to define the ways an FBPT can actually happen.

3 WAYS TO REALIZE A FIXED BASED PROCEDURAL TRAINER (FBPT)

One.. FDS does everything. ( A complete FBPT can mean many things though so some clarification required. The base unit would be like this for example:
http://www.flightdecksolutions.com/prod_info.php?id=566
Customer purchases the FBPT, they add Seats (we can help locate), Computers, Software, Local setup and Visual System.

Second approach, more and more common but not always for everyone.. to buy in sections and do your own integration. You can save 30% of the base FBPT price (approx) but you do the integration.
There are no magic manuals though so not for everyone. We have to be very careful not to ship sections to someone that should be having us do the entire project. We would be trying to do the integration by phone, thousands of miles away with someone that likely does not have the skill-set to achieve the end result. That can be a big problem!

Third way is to buy bits and pieces, kits. Slowly work your way through the entire process. This is the low cost method but time is a big factor.. A lot of expertise in every area also required.

I am here to help and can look at any one of the options above to help you get to where you want to go in all of this!
PC

Sim-Avionics Cont'd

2010-03-23T11:28:00.000-07:00

I was hesitant about using the blog to discuss issues that are "Flaring up" in various forums as I wanted to see this blog as a device I could use to talk to our many customers and keep people informed on the many things going on in and around FDS. I will however go off course for today to share an email reply that I wrote a few minutes ago. It was very simple to write as it contains my exact sentiments presented in the most diplomatic manner I could find.

The “Introductory Pricing” that Sim-Avionics offered for an extended period of time expired once we shifted things to FDS. I would like to elaborate on this for everyone.

For me personally, I think that the investment of time involved in creating a software package
of this nature (by primarily one person doing the code) is a massive undertaking.
Many who have tried have faded away and left many users stranded. This is a very undesirable outcome for anyone and leaves the customer in a very bad state.

The ability to sustain quality avionics software requires that the company (Sim-A) have the ability to sustain themselves. Luckily in this case the business expense is primarily time.
For FDS, we work with a wide range of customers. Enthusiasts all the way to Boeing.
We deliver a high quality range of products to all of our customers and the ability to be able
to offer the equivalent in Avionics Software is paramount to our ability to grow the business
And in turn invest in more and more products down the road.

We looked at the entire market and all the available software packages out here. Knowing the quality and future of Sim-Avionics software we priced it accordingly.
The new pricing was formed out of a detailed study of the “industry” as well as a realistic look at the ability for the Sim-Avionics developer to be able to sustain himself full time and fully devoted to working on the software. I hope you can understand and support this strategy and in turn your hobby. Mark (as well as Gary) has poured thousands of hours into this product and likely if you were to assign an hourly $ rate to that work it would be a dollar or two an hour. This was also done in his spare time. Knowing the amount of email that can flow and the expectations out here I would not be too far off if I was to suggest that Mark has not had much "Free Time" in the past few years.

You do not have to buy anything you do not want to. FDS is not the sole provider of hardware out here either. What I can tell you is that FDS continues to be a very stable company, continues to grow year after year, has a very healthy balance of customers in both Enthusiast and Pro (Subject to much of the misinformation pasted suggesting that we are not interested in the enthusiast market and only focused on PRO) and will continue on this course for years to come.

We have watched literally all of these customers purchase existing software for well over
$2350CAD, day after day. Our feeling is that Sim-A presents a very realistic option to this
and the forward thinking strategy will deliver as the years go on.
For a person who is thinking long term, investing thousands of dollars/Eu into hardware for a project, we feel that we are very well positioned on software pricing for all of our customers, you included.

One of the biggest elements that we will be promoting on SIM-A is the ability for an entire flight deck to be run on a minimal amount of computers. Picture SIM-A running on ONE or TWO computers. No need for 5,6, 7 or 8 computers. That sort of architecture in the software happened by strategy not be accident. Being able to simplify these setups has been number one at FDS for years and SIM-A helps bring that goal into range. Being able to help and support this is a key part of moving forward for everyone down this new road.

Think about the total project you are building, think about the time involved and about the "Heart and Soul" that Avionics software is to what you are trying to achieve.
Without the Marks and Enrico's out here we would all be sitting in front of very elaborate "MUSEUM PIECES". Don't be afraid to properly support one the biggest elements you will need.

There are a few key elements that have not been reviewed or discussed including a very serious team of support people that will be announced this week. We have a group of some of the world's best people on the planet all willing to roll up their sleeves to support FDS and Sim-Avionics. These notable players will be a very big value added element that is critical to everyone going forward. Your project is depending on decent hardware, software and support people to make it reach the expectations you have likely set.

Hope to see you using SIM-A as you move forward.
Sincerely,
PC

SIM-AVIONICS Information Pages

Bahrain Formula One Race Day and Trek Home

2010-03-15T20:41:00.000-07:00

Another great day at the Bahrain Grand Prix with Ron. He managed to get a few great shots of some of the vintage cars that were brought in by the race organizer (the Crown Prince of Bahrain who we had the pleasure of meeting Saturday). 18 of the living 20 Champions were in atttendance and some of them took to the track in these vintage cars. A real treat for any F1Fan.
Ron and I are in Abu Dhabi now and getting our heads together for the 15 hour flight in front of us... ouch!
Back to some discussion on Simulation once I am settled back in. Tons to talk about on the software and hardware side of things.
PC

2010-03-13T21:19:00.000-08:00

Great day at Sahkir enjoying the F1 practice and qualifying sessions. We were lucky to view the entire day from the VIP Tower which overlooks the entire track.

The facility is really quite incredible and the attention to detail amazing. Ron and I were "star struck" a few times as celebrities were everywhere. so far we have seen Clive Owen (Actor), Emerson Fittipaldi (F1 Champ), Damon Hill, (F1 Champ), Mika Hakkinen (F1 Champ), and Richard Quest (high Strung CNN guy).

Two very notable people were the Crown Prince of Bahrain (The Bahrain F1 Track is his project) and Sir Richard Branson. I got my nerve way up and actually introduced myself to Richard Branson and handed him my card saying he would get a kick out of our webpage and the many customers/activities going on. Hope he looks! He would love what our customers are doing.

We spent a few hours looking over the B747-400 FBPT that we delivered here and did some flying. Monday we will roll up our sleeves and do some software updates on the setup and more flight testing.

Today is race day and we are expecting the tower to be packed. Hopefully we find a good spot to enjoy the day. Hope everyone is well.

Travel -

2010-03-12T21:05:00.000-08:00

Hello to everyone from Bahrain. I was honoured to be invited to attend the Formula One race here on the weekend and I am attending with my good friend Ron Weins.

FDS has worked on a few projects in Bahrain over the years and we were surprised by a very generous offer to attend.

Many thanks to ES for his kindness and support to FDS.

Back in a few days and looking forward to talking more on SIM-A and some other product related news.

All the best to everyone!

PC

Sim-Avionics and FDS (Part 2)

2010-03-09T10:27:00.000-08:00

In the past year we have done many projects with their software and one highlight being with Boeing on the B737NG-EPX contract that we were awarded.
As a result of all of this work we discussed strategy and their position in the market out here.
Our overall feeling was that they had really pushed deep into the inneer workings and managed to pull them out into their primary configuration screen. This really opened the door to fine tuning any setup.
As we pushed Mark to look seriously at taking his efforts up to a higher level (Full Time Sim-A!) we needed to create a business plan that would support him in doing that yet not inundate him with his original "introductory" pricing strategy. (It served SIM-A and their customers well while it was available.)
Development coding, sales, marketing, tech support would have been highly problematic should the older business plan and pricing have been maintained. In this niche business it would simply not sustain him and the business.
The pricing that SIM-A had in their "introductory" strategy was never designed for the long term business plan.

We have started to restructure the business and pricing certainly is a major component. The following elements were primary points of interest in this new plan:

Market: Review existing product and align packages/pricing to meet the actual competitive and proper market position for the Sim-Avionics brand.
Market: Target the same demographic that FDS is finding great success with and help SIM-A “Ride that wave”. Mid to High End Enthusiasts and Professional.
Market: Target for Sim-A to be the highest Value Avionics Brand available to all customer categories.

Back with you again in a day or so with more overview on FDS/SIM-A.

Sim-Avionics And FDS

2010-03-06T07:57:00.000-08:00

By now many folks have seen that FDS and Sim-A have made an alliance that sees the latter joining the FDS family. I wanted to cover off some background on this issue and share some insights. Some of the key reasons why we moved forward on this include:

The Sim-A Team have been quietly devleoping their software for over 8 years

"Getting it Right" before releasing was a very intelligent approach

The software was developed in a B777 sim that was flown regularly

One Aircraft developed at a time (B777 before moving to B737NG)

These are character traits that lend a lot of confidence to someone like myself who has a lot riding on a decision of this nature. FDS is up to 12 employees now and our customer base grows daily, in all sectors, Enthusiast to PRO. We feel very confident that Sim-A can push forward with us and match our direction and pace. Part of what makes that work is the software being within reach of our "High End Enthusiast" customers as well as offering PRO Level elements that can keep that group in range as well.

Some of the benefits to SIM-A include:

Ability to focus on Code and allow others to handle the bulk of Support and Communications

Ability for SIM-A to watch the support forum and not have to stop coding to jump in daily

Better access to PRO level customers that are usually very willing to assist in pushing the software higher

The ability to realistically look at entering the business in a full time manner. That can take some backing and support. (our job is to help make that real for Mark!)

In the next day or two I will cover off some of the technical elements that make Sim-A a very worthy option for any setup.

Back soon!

B777 Dual Seat Trainer Now Posted

2010-02-23T10:37:00.000-08:00

Probably one of the slickest setups we have developed in the past year or so has been the B777 FBPT. We have received a lot of push from our customers to release the DSTD version that would allow people to start a 777 project at a very high level. Worth looking at the new piece and seeing the many new products that are in the Price Sheet... A few surprises likely!
PC

Blogging And Another Digital Step Forward

2010-02-22T14:05:00.000-08:00

One of the biggest challenges I find at FDS is connecting with our many customers. There are so many things that we can be talking/showing everyone but webpage limitations make that tricky.
My goal for this Blog is to make more information available, deliver some insights into FDS and what we are doing, planning.. and most importantly where we are going.
For now I push back to the web/email part of the day and join you again here shortly.
PC