At HomeSim, we know many of our users personally. We work closely with them and follow their journeys. Some simulator journeys are very straight forward. Some are like Ed’s… Not so easy!
Ed is one of our Dutch costumers and has been interested in flight simulation and cockpit building since the late 80’s. His background is in Control Engineering and electronics. As life progressed, he found himself working for the government. His passion for aviation and his love for hands on working with electronics triggered him to look at cockpit building. He also loves science, maths and aerodynamics. All these interests are combined in building your own cockpit.
Dutch heritage: Fokker
His journey took another turn in 1991 when he was in touch with the Dutch military regarding the build of a Fokker 27 simulator. Soon after he contacted with Fokker at Amsterdam Schiphol Airport to see if they would help him building a Fokker 50 flightdeck. After the demise of Fokker, this project did not continue. Looking for other options, Ed found that there was a lot of documentation out there for the Boeing 737. This was around the year 2000. Back then, aircraft parts for the Airbus were rare and thus the 737 was the next logical step to use as a template for his next projects.
“I started building my own panels in the attic. Used I/O technology and interface boards to make them work. Very quickly, I realised that the height of the ceiling would become an issue. I decided to build a shed, dedicated to my hobby. The build of this delayed my projects for a couple of years.”
As the shed is cold in the winter, Ed decided that this is a perfect time of year to be programming. Constantly evolving projects and sourcing of OEM panels is a challenge and takes up a lot of time and money. The same goes for the interfacing and making the right choices for the simulator platforms.
Why did you choose Prosim for your build?
“Prosim is a Dutch product and I have known Hanne (Hanne Koole, CEO Prosim Training Solutions) for a long time. It was a lot cheaper than project magenta at the time and there was no software out there that could help me creating the most realistic cockpit. The best part of Prosim is that their people listen to their users. They are approachable and their product is always being developed. The interface that Prosim has, really helps me with the complicated matters like OEM and I/O technology”
What would you have done differently if you look back at your cockpit building journey?
Ed immediately answers: “Buy less. I have so many parts that I don’t use anymore. As the project evolves, a lot becomes obsolete. Unfortunately, it is impossible to look into the future to see if you really need the parts or if better stuff becomes available.”
Are you done yet?
“Absolutely not!” Ed is incredibly passionate about his hobby. His journey is by far not finished. When we ask what he would like to add to his simulator, he says: “Control loading and original seats. It is a challenge to find seats that are OEM but affordable”.
