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Dad's perfect gift for son: A 737 cockpit simulator in his bedroom

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Laurent Aigon knew exactly what his kid wanted. So, despite not being a pilot himself -- nor an engineer -- he orders the parts online and begins to build. (news.cnet.com) More...

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AndrewChanHK2010
Andrew Chan 5
How brilliant! To go to all that trouble and he has NO knowledge of aviation at all! Amazing!
bentwing60
bentwing60 4
You beat me to the punch on this one Torsten. Was posting it when I saw the recent posts. Way too cool and an indication of the dedication of some of the non-aviator aviators. The number of licensed pilots is relatively small, the number of aficionados is huge. This website is testament to that. Cheers.
bentwing60
bentwing60 11
I guess I had more to say and didn't realize it. I love my job, but am relatively ambivalent to many of the privileged whom I spend my lifes work flying around. They are just that, the privileged, in all their vein glory. Not all, but many. Nothing makes me happier than giving a tour to a student pilot/flight instructor/ramp rat at a small airport, where they don't get many jets. It's a privilege to fly them and a privilege to show them to the up and coming. There is definitely a pecking order in this bidness, and I'll be damned if it ever separates me from my bug smasher roots.
HunterTS4
Toby Sharp 2
Bentwing.......You rock. Carry on!
akayemm
Er.A.K. Mittal 2
This is what I can call 'catch them young'. The father is 40yo so son must be pretty young. Who knows over time, this lad may turn into a very good pilot OR a very good designer of aircrafts and/or flight simulators.
oggii80
Raymond Ogg 1
That's why he built it over a five year period. I'm doing something similar with my own 'pit. I have a five year goal,
Except my daughter and I will be taking turns in an A-10 >.<
WigzellRM
Ralph Wigzell 1
Lucky kid.
WigzellRM
Ralph Wigzell 1
I have to take my kid in the real thing : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dmPT3tm9wtQ
Steffj
Coul i be your son too !!!
kg0ye
Griff Griffin 1
Looks to me like the Dad, is the guy in the left seat.
JimHeslop
Jim Heslop 1
That is fantastic. What dedication and love for his son. But I did notice in the picture that.. DAD... is in the left seat! I would do the same thing! "It's for you, but I built it so I get to be Captain!
Vixen
Dyan Wilson 1
That's Cool! Watch out NASA....Future Astronaut in training!
KDSM
Tim Swift 1
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qLFuQiD9uYQ
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UGGHifybhzM
LordLayton
Good for all of them an the pursuit of complete happiness!
zcolescott
Meh, had a friend do this in his house in Las Vegas...and then turned it into a business just across the street from McCarren...which he then sold. That's a better story. lol
bentwing60
bentwing60 2
Is that the gated property just south of LAS with what looks like a Challenger on its own little runway and attached to a house or some sort of structure? It' 1.25 miles from the end of 25L going into McCarren. I have seen this a couple of times on short final. Incredible place. Google earth it, somebody, with Pro or more skills than me and link it here for all to see. Then tell us the story.
TorstenHoff
Torsten Hoff 1
Here's a link:

https://maps.google.com/?ll=36.07138,-115.104039&spn=0.002903,0.003189&t=h&z=19

Someone else will have to explain what it is doing there!
bentwing60
bentwing60 1
Thx. Torsten. The rest of the property isn't shabby either.
bmwap1
that's a Fokker F-28 owned by Wayne Newton. It's on his property which was supposed to be turned into a museum to include that aircraft. apparently there is some legal drama and the project is on hold.
bentwing60
bentwing60 1
Thanks Brian. Hence, the W N in landscaping behind the jet. Don't land on that runway very often and hadn't broken the code on the type. Since I don't know F-28's from Adam, I probably wouldn't have known what it was if I was standing next to it.
bmwap1
http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2010/sep/01/showman-wants-show-home-private-jet-too/
bmwap1
Tail number N500WN
Moviela
Ric Wernicke -3
I find it cool that he could source a full modern 737 cockpit and teach it to whistle. I think it is ironic his 737 was featured in a magazine called Southwest.

I find it disturbing they were speaking French in the cockpit. Safety is the reason for only one language world wide to be used in aviation. If pilots cannot speak English it is not a true simulation is it?
bentwing60
bentwing60 4
You are a bit off the mark on the language thing Ric. In many countries, the native language is spoken amongst ATC and the natives. Controllers must be conversant in English as it is the ICAO language of mandate. Go fly around Mexico for a while and see if you can tell what the other airplanes are doing if you don't speak Spanish. And in the cockpit I promise you they communicate in their native tongue.
akayemm
Er.A.K. Mittal 4
Well said my friend.
Correct me if I am wrong that all this talking was happening on the 'sim' ? Built by a French man for his very young French son. ;-P If correct, he would naturally load native language soft ware. At least to begin with. Later the father could always 'upgrade' to include English! No?
WigzellRM
Ralph Wigzell 1
Yup, local language is still used in many countries.Reminds me of the Tower of Babel story.May I assure you that I have come across French, Spanish, Portuguese, Russian and indeed Afrikaans in South Africa in aviation.I speak and understand all of them to varying degrees.If both the controller and aircraft crew are certain that there are no other aircraft in the vicinity, it could pass, but an absolute no-no in general. The dangerous part is that even if all communication is conducted in English, non-anglophone aircrew and/or controllers not having a good command of English can present a danger, as they will not react to an instruction, warning or danger signal that they don't understand and I have come across this several times.
Moviela
Ric Wernicke 1
I know what you are saying is true, but it does not make it right. Flying over Cuba I am often aware that all pilots do not know what is being said. I think it is unsafe and should not be allowed by treaty. As for cockpit conversations, if they want to talk about girls or football feel free to use any language. For communication concerning operation of the aircraft the English only lamp should be lit.
TBaran3783
Tomasz Baran 0
Consistency! English is ICAO and that is the law, that is why every pilot on their License has "English Proficient". Yes there are broken rules all over the world and yes the cockpit lingo if both pilots are from the same country speak their language amongst themselves but for the CVR and ATC they have to communicate in English for Safety purposes. Consistency!
akayemm
Er.A.K. Mittal 2
Please check Ann 1 Ch 1 Clause 1.2.9 of ICAO Convention on Language Proficiency. No mention of English as language !
That is law.
bentwing60
bentwing60 2
I'm not arguing the law Tomasz, I am stating the reality. "English Proficient" is a very broad statement, as I am sure you are aware from hearing what comes over cockpit speakers and headsets when flying in foreign countries. I suspect many a CVR tape is translated before publication. Didn't say it was right, just my experience. And I agree, the whole purpose for the ICAO is consistency in international flight ops.
akayemm
Er.A.K. Mittal 1
Want to know what US law demands? Check the following from Part 14 of CFR
§ 129.5 Operations specifications.
(a) ...............
(b) Each foreign air carrier conducting operations within the United States must conduct its operations in accordance with the Standards contained in Annex 1 (Personnel Licensing), Annex 6 (Operation of Aircraft), Part I (International Commercial Air Transport—Aeroplanes) or Part III (International Operations—Helicopters), as appropriate, and in Annex 8 (Airworthiness of Aircraft) to the Convention on International Civil Aviation.........
akayemm
Er.A.K. Mittal 1
English? Only for international flying. Not for inland or local !
TBaran3783
Tomasz Baran 0
Yeah very nice but a while back I priced a sim like that and the cost was outstandingly expensive, he should have taken that money sent the kid to a Flight school in America; get all his ratings, instructed, get 1000 hours of real fixed wing time and go back to France and get a Job flying a real Boeing 737 or Airbus for AirFrance!
jjsifo
Well, who knows what is behind all this,that "SIM" looks expensive,maybe his son has some sort of limitation which prevents him from getting into the real deal.whatever the case may be it is quite an impressive piece of work. JJ

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