Greetings fellow Simpit builders!  Today I had the wonderful opportunity to be able to tour the FlightSafety/Boeing training center in Tukwilla,WA. Since the tour was kind of a rushed affair,              I wasn't able to get the detail and information we REALLY all want, but I did get some very nice pictures.  You will notice the large number of motion base pictures.  I did this to illustrate as best I could how these commercial motion bases are put together.

After the tour, we ran over to the Boeing Museum of Flight on Boeing Field for some photos.       There are pics of everything from the NASA F-104 to the first 707 Air Force One.

Gene Buckle

April 25th, 2000

The following images and commentary are from my tour of the Flightsafety/Boing Regional Training Center on April 25th, 2000.

This is a fully restored Link Trainer that was restored by Boeing volunteers in 1994.  The plaque reads:

Instrument Flight Trainer
Manufactured by Link
Also known as: "Pilot Maker" and "Blue Box"
     Used for flight training from the 1940's until the early 1960's.
                Restored by the Boeing Company in 1994
Dedicated To:
Continuing Advances in Flight Simulation Technology
 
 

This is a shot of the Link Trainer cockpit.  As you can see, it's pretty sparse in there.
 
 

...and the expected exterior shot.

You can see from the image that all the controls are fully articulated.  I'm not exactly sure *why* since there is little or no training value, but you have to admit, is is pretty neat. You'll notice a little black circle at the bottom of the fuselage in line with the leading edge of the horizontal stabilizer.  This is marked "Wind Speed" and is graded from 0 to 160 MPH in increments of 10.  This may have been used to adjust the tension on the flight controls, but there wasn't anyone present that knew anything about it.

The simulator sits on a base that will allow it to rotate a full 360 degrees, or so it appears.  This may have been done to simplify the system design by allowing the use of a real compass, but again since there wasn't a "Link Expert" on hand, it will have to remain a mystery until one of you readers points out the errors.

One detail you can't see here is that the entire "airframe" is covered in fabric.  They've done a wonderful job and it looks just like it must have when brand new.  Kudos to Boeing for preserving a critical element in the early years of flight simulation.