The cost of flights and Gift certificates for the flight.

In the first half of February, four flight simulators are launched in Moscow at once: from the 1st, a Boeing-737NG simulator is operating in the Afimall shopping center in Moscow City by Dream.Aero, and from the 15th, two Airbus A320s and one “ Boeing-737" in the shopping center "Riviera" of the company TFT.

Simulators are similar in their design: they are a mobile platform with a cockpit model of the corresponding aircraft attached to it with all controls; in front of the cab is a panoramic projection screen. During the flight, the platform accurately works out the consequences of the actions performed and the flight conditions (banks, turbulence, etc.). Due to the slopes of the platform, longitudinal and transverse acceleration is also simulated.

One of the Airbus A320 simulators is mounted on a fixed platform; "flights" on it are cheaper, while realism almost does not suffer from this: judging by the experience of "flights" on the one built in St. Petersburg, the brain adapts precisely to changes in the picture on the screen, successfully replacing the absence of signals from the vestibular apparatus - especially then changes actually occur only at the beginning of the maneuver: if you close your eyes in a real plane during a turn, you will not be able to determine whether there is any roll or not.

Moreover, simulators on a moving platform have a slight delay between image changes and cockpit movements, which can cause feelings close to dizziness for some people (by the way, this is why children are only allowed from 8 years old). There is no such effect only in professional simulators where pilots are trained (and we specifically compared and will tell you in detail the other day).

Dream Aero, founded in 2012 in St. Petersburg, has its own production site in Tatarstan; while 80% of the system components are Russian-made. The simulator uses a software engine from the commercial computer flight simulator X-Plane and software for controlling the simulator of our own design. The mathematical model of an airliner here differs slightly from that in a professional simulator, so it cannot be used to train pilots, since even the slightest deviation is critical. However, thanks to its own software, there is no copyright infringement and no claims from Boeing. In terms of hardware, the attraction and professional simulators are almost identical; including image quality in most cases (except for additional scenes of a number of airports in high resolution).

TFT uses Microsoft Flight Simulator software; these simulators have already worked for several recent years on another site, but were forced to move out due to the termination of the lease of the premises.

Dream Aero since late 2014; Moscow differs from it in the improvement of a number of structural elements. For two years, 7,500 hours of flights were made here (more than 10 thousand visitors). The average load is 40%. At the same time, it has a pronounced seasonality; in particular, in winter it is about twice as much as in summer, which is associated with a large share of gift certificates in revenue - about half of all bookings (New Year and gender holidays) are sold through them. This may be due to the cost of the service, which is quite high for the mass market - the minimum “flight” costs 4900 rubles for half an hour. Interestingly, more than a third of the visitors are women; the simulator is also suitable for combating aerophobia.

The media partner of the Dream Aero simulator is Rossiya Airlines, and TFT is Aeroflot. By the way, since we are talking about airlines: UTair gives you half an hour to fly on its real simulator of the legendary Mi-8 helicopter for 6,000 bonus miles. It is located in the personnel training center in Tyumen.

The TFT.aero flight training center is located in the Riviera shopping center, where everyone can try themselves as a pilot of a passenger airliner. Flight simulators "Boeing 737" and "Airbus A320" on a mobile platform fully reproduce the controls of the aircraft, extremely accurately convey the physical sensations of takeoff, maneuvering, landing, flying in the turbulence zone.

All major control, navigation and communication systems are connected. Fully reproduced all the differences in management different types aircraft. The realism of sensations is incomparable with computer flight simulators.

Airbus and Boeing differ in the type of control (joystick and steering wheel). While not certified flight simulators, the simulators are as close as possible to training simulators for professional pilots. The difference to non-specialists will be imperceptible.

Full immersion in reality is provided by a spherical screen, a movable platform transmits acceleration. You can choose any airport in the world, where to take off from and where to land, as well as any emergency situation: flying in a thunderstorm, in the mountains in fog.

Feel like a pilot with TFT.aero and invite your friends to fly with you - two guest passengers can watch your flight for free.

The cost of flights and Gift certificates for the flight:

30 minutes flight on a Boeing 737 or Airbus A320 — 5,000 rubles
60 minutes of flight on a Boeing 737 or Airbus A320 - 9,000 rubles
90 minutes of flight on a Boeing 737 or Airbus A320 - 14,000 rubles
120 minutes of flight on a Boeing 737 or Airbus A320 - 18,000 rubles

The cost of delivery of the Gift Card (within the Moscow Ring Road) is 500 rubles. Certificates are valid for 180 days.

In Moscow, at 12 Kutuzovsky Prospekt, there is a place that is undoubtedly interesting, if not unique, for everyone who is passionate about civil (and not only) aviation.
His name isTFT.aero.
It is here that the only (as far as I know) publicly available full-featured Boeing 737NG and Airbus A320 flight simulators are located.
Do you dream of flying somewhere in New York, for example, in the role of an aircraft commander? Do you want to feel the tension of the hydraulic systems at the helm of a Boeing? With your own hands feel like a multi-ton Airbus controlled small joystick - sidestick? Then you are here.
I was in Moscow on a business trip at the beginning of the week, and, of course, I hurried to seize the moment and see everything with my own eyes.

Under the cut, 40-odd photos and some technical details will be found.
All photos, traditionally, are typified up to 1400 points.

T the trainers are located in one rather spacious hall. This, among other things, is an excellent opportunity to immediately plunge into both "religions" of modern aircraft construction and, perhaps, answer the question for yourself Canon or Nikon Boeing or Airbus. It's not for nothing that I say "simulator" and not a simulator, although in foreign terminology both are denoted by the word simulator with different prefixes. Before us are simulators, or rather, CTS - integrated aircraft simulators.Only CTCs allow for the training of aircraft crews in the full scope of their functionality. The cockpits are absolutely identical to the cockpits of real aircraft, the platforms are movable and equipped with advanced visualization and voice acting systems. Systems allow you to work out, including emergency situations.

Do you want to fire the engine on takeoff?
Can be arranged.
Everything is grown-up.

Well, let's go down from heaven to earth

The MCDU is the flight computer input device. Through them, the flight route is set, the flight data of the aircraft and some other systems are tested, as far as I know.
The photo shows that the destination is the lane 14R Domodedovo

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cockpit Boeing 737 photo
Most of the top canopy is reserved for the autopilot

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cockpit Boeing 737 photo
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cockpit Boeing 737 photo
In the foreground, the landing gear release-retract handle lurks in the shadows. On the "classic" it is connected directly to the hydraulic crane, hardcore is shorter.
On next generation Boeings may have tied up with electronics, I don’t know.
Under the handle we observe a memo of instrumental speeds for the release of the landing gear and flaps.

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cockpit Boeing 737 photo
No plane will ever fly anywhere without a watch.

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cockpit Boeing 737 photo
The leading position on the central console is occupied by a complex control body for engines and mechanization.
Ores are combined with reverse control levers - RURs.
Three toggle switches at the bottom at the base of the column - control of the fire extinguishing system, from left to right: the first engine - the APU - the second engine.
We pull it up - the fuel line, the hydraulic line are blocked, the power supply is turned off. We turn - the fire extinguishing cylinder works.

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cockpit Boeing 737 photo
Behind the ores, a little further we see two handles, on the left - spoilers (speed brakes), on the right - flaps (flaps)

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cockpit Boeing 737 photo
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cockpit Boeing 737 photo
On the sides of the control column are the stabilizer trim discs, on the left we also see the parking brake

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cockpit Boeing 737 photo
At the ends of the handles there are small buttons to turn off the autothrottle

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cockpit Boeing 737 photo
Below on the pedestal we see the on-board radio control panels (blocks from left to right, with digital indication), between them I don’t know what the disgrace is, but somewhere here there should be a TCAS control panel. Below on the left is the control panel for audio devices (yes, when you got on the plane and the PIC says on the speakerphone "Dear passengers, the commander says, I'm glad to greet you ...", he obviously pressed something here :)
Well, completely below the trim control unit, and in the lower right corner - the control of the lock of the cab door, so that no one would roam.

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cockpit Boeing 737 photo
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cockpit Boeing 737 photo
Before going to the Airbus cockpit, I recommend (if you haven’t seen it yet) to watch Alexey’s video letchikleha Kochemasov about preparations for the B737NG flight, you will receive answers to a number of questions that probably arose along the way.
The video, by the way, was filmed on this very simulator :)

Let's take a look?

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cockpit Airbus A320 photo
Airbus' cabin is more ascetic than Boeing's, slightly more spacious, and, subjectively, less comfortable.
The layout as a whole does not differ from the layout of the Boeing:
- overhead panel is also responsible for aircraft systems,
- on the visor of the dashboard is the control of the autopilot,
- the FAC and the second panels are two multifinctional displays on each side,
- the basis of the central panel - two displays: the upper one - information on engines, the lower one - the state of the aircraft systems. On each of the displays, you can call up different windows, and switching between them, you can see, for example, the state of the fuel system, the temperature in different parts of the aircraft and overboard, the operation of the air conditioning system, etc.
- on the "pedestal" we see the control panel of the MCDU computer, a radio station, ores, flaps, spoilers, and some other little things

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cockpit Airbus A320 photo
Obviously, there is no steering wheel here and never will be. Airbuses, if anyone suddenly does not know, are controlled by a sidestick under the left hand of the PIC and under the right hand, respectively, of the co-pilot. Whether it's good or bad, it's better to ask the pilots, but so far no one seems to have complained, especially since the advantages of the concept are obvious - there is more space, nothing blocks the instruments, and of course the branded Erbasov sliding table, dearly loved by the crews.

Squiggle behind the sidestick - front steering column control knob

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cockpit Airbus A320 photo
The central panel displays are controlled from this unit on the central console. Left and right we see MCDU

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cockpit Airbus A320 photo
Spoilers (on the left) and flaps (on the right) are controlled on separate handles in the far part of the console (closer to us)

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cockpit Airbus A320 photo
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cockpit Airbus A320 photo
The upper half of the remote control is already familiar to us. Below, a place of honor is traditionally occupied by a column with combined throttles / RURs, like the Boeing has black and white stabilizer shift discs. To the left and right of the speaker are the radio and audio control panels

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cockpit Airbus A320 photo
Starting engines

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cockpit Airbus A320 photo
Airbus MCDUs are much more functional than those on Boeing.
In fact, all communication between a person and an aircraft is conducted through these devices.
Yes, the clock is also available here, we see them above the computer screen

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cockpit Airbus A320 photo
We raise our eyes higher .. even higher .. we see overhead

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cockpit Airbus A320 photo
Subjectively, again, but Airbus's overhead seemed to me much more "readable" than in Boeing.
The entire panel is strictly divided into sectors by light indication.
At Boeing, the most important consoles are painted light gray.

In the left and right modules there are controls for a bunch of systems and blocks: heating, alarms ..
I’ll tell you about the panels of the central block below, except that the fire extinguishing panel didn’t get into the frame here, its edge is visible at the top of the frame.

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cockpit Airbus A320 photo
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cockpit Airbus A320 photo
There is even a tail number, as you can see :) It belongs to the real Aeroflot Airbus A320-214.
The artificial horizon in the photo is a reserve one. I really always thought that it’s better to reserve electronics with mechanics, but yes, engineers know better

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cockpit Airbus A320 photo
While I'm crawling around the cabin with a camera, the board is languishing on the executive, the airport's work is paralyzed :)))

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cockpit Airbus A320 photo
I’ll add on my own, the complexes are really made on the highest level, the only serious discrepancy with real cockpits is the absence of circuit breaker panels behind the pilots' seats, which is not surprising, they are simply not needed for the purposes of the simulator.
TFT.aero offers many flight programs for both beginners and experienced pilots. First time at the helm? You can make a simple flight from Domodedovo to Sheremetyevo, for example. Want something more difficult? Then we fly to Geneva, Frankfurt, New York ... if you wish, you can complicate the flight with heavy rain, icing, crosswinds ... and also night flights, engine failures, fires, depressurization ... there are hundreds of options! And so that the liner does not get lost in the endless sky, an experienced co-pilot - an active Aeroflot pilot - will help you. In general, if you are in Moscow, I recommend it.

For hospitality and the opportunity to slightly lift the veil of the wonderful world of civil aviation, I thank the administration TFT.aero and personally - Natalia :)
Thank you!