Britain's top aerospace degree provider gains its own flight simulator
Keywords Flight simulators, Degree course, Pilots, Training
Kingston University's School of Mechanical, Aeronautical and Production Engineering (MAP) has recently unveiled its newly purchased Merlin 520-T flight simulator which will have a huge impact on the learning experience of Kingston's aerospace students.
The simulator has visual displays, instrumentation, pilot controls, a motion base and an instructor station. It will enable students for the first time to design aircraft specifications, load the configurations into the simulator computer and test the result "in flight".
Professor Andrew Self, Head of MAP, said:
There is no substitute for students altering the characteristics of an aircraft and flying the simulated result. Ten minutes in the simulator is worth hours in the classroom.
Until now, aerospace students have ironically been unable to experience the effects of their designs, due to the prohibitive cost of flight simulators. However, the 520-T simulator has been tailored specifically for the use of the school at a fraction of the cost of those used in industry.
Commercial simulators, used to train professional pilots, replicate only one type of aircraft and can cost as much as £20 million, whereas MAP's simulator has added facilities enabling students to "fly" a range of aircraft from agile fighter planes to wide bodied transport aircraft. Every MAP student will be allocated flying time in the simulator.
Former Harrier pilot John Farley, who has a lifetime's experience in the cockpit, was invited to demonstrate the simulator's "flying" capabilities (Plate 1), showing how the simulator can mimic a variety of military and commercial aircraft.
He commented:
The simulator is a significant piece of equipment for MAP. It will give aerospace students "flying time" in a "real" aircraft, allowing them to test out the modifications they design "in the air" without their feet ever leaving the ground!
Plate 1 Former Harrier pilot John Farley "flies" the newly-developed flight simulator which will be used for teaching aerospace students at Kingston University's School of Mechanical, Aeronautical and Production Engineering
The flight simulator is only one example of MAP providing ground-breaking teaching facilities or being involved in exciting high-profile projects. Other recent projects include the Millennium Rocket which students are building to challenge the UK amateur altitude record and the Silver Stryker kit car, built by students and soon to be raced by them at Brands Hatch and Silverstone.
In terms of teaching, MAP earned a top score of 24 out of 24 in the most recent HEFCE quality assessment for the teaching of aeronautical and mechanical engineering - higher than all other universities! It also has an excellent employment record, reflected in the national league tables which have rated the school as the top provider of aerospace engineering degree courses in the country.
Professor Self used the launch party to thank his staff and industrial partners for their support and contribution to MAP's success, according to national league tables. He said:
It is our staff who make things happen, who battle through structures to provide the best UK provision of MAP engineering. I offer my thanks to those magnificent men and women in their flying machines. They are the real reason for our success.
Details available from: Kingston University. Tel: +44 (0)181 457 7985; Fax:+44 (0) 181 547 7980; e-mail: A.Gupta@Kingston.ac.uk
