Sim-sational

A Boeing pilot flies the Qantas A380 simulator

Long before the first Qantas A380 touched down on Australian soil, its crews were well versed in the ways of the massive Airbus flagship. A pivotal reason for this state of readiness was their training in the state-of-the-art CAE full motion simulator.

Volunteering to climb aboard a flight simulator under the watchful eyes of two senior training captains on a rostered day off is not generally regarded as ‘normal’ behaviour for a commercial pilot. However, when the aircraft involved is the newly arrived Airbus A380 and one’s licence renewal isn’t on the line, this is a case of pleasure rather than pain.