The Mach 0.1 Simulated Glider Cockpit Goes to Holland

Rhonda Clerkin • August 15, 2018

On a recent trip to Amsterdam, I had the pleasure of visiting the Netherlands ZCNOP glider club in Marknesse. They had recently purchased a Mach 0.1 simulator from us and I was interested to check in and see how it was working for them.

It was a picturesque soaring day when several members of the club and three board members from the Dutch Gliding Association met us at the clubhouse to talk about how they are using the simulator and the potential for its use in other clubs. The Mach 0.1 is set up in a corner of their clubhouse on its very own “flying carpet”. When we walked in there were several people crowded around watching as someone flew the simulator. The club members see that as a great strength of using the simulator -- the ability to learn as a group from instructors, more experienced pilots, and each other.

While they have only been using the Mach 0.1 for a few months, and do not have any hard data yet, from what they have seen so far, they are expecting a 20% decrease in training time with using the sim. The standard practice at this club is to have morning briefing at 10:00. They have designated 9:00-10:00 as simulator training time where an instructor works with 4 students for an hour, each getting 15 minutes of “flying” time. Club members have been showing up earlier and earlier to get time on the sim before their time in the air. On bad weather days, the sim may get flown all day long.

Besides the training benefits, one of the greatest unexpected benefits they have seen is the increased camaraderie between new club members as they get to know each other through showing up early and using the sim.

They have also been able to take the Mach 0.1 into the community to introduce others to the sport, even using it as a fundraiser by raffling off ”flight time” on the sim.

Dutch Gliding Association board members Lonneke Halsema, Noah Verhoef, and Ed Westerhof were interested in ZCNOP’s experience with using the sim and wanted to share that experience with the other 40 Dutch clubs in hopes of encouraging, and possibly helping to finance, the adoption of simulator training in all of the clubs. I appreciate the warm welcome we were given and encourage anyone visiting the area to go visit them. We look forward to working with them to help increase the efficiency of training and bring more people to the sport of soaring in the US and abroad.

A Note to Sim Training Naysayers

By Russell Holtz • January 30, 2019
One of the things that experienced glider pilots and instructors say is that even though they have tons of experience, they can NOT fly a glider well in Condor, especially on tow. There are two reasons for this that they need to understand. If they are using a joystick on a table, they are controlling the stick using their shoulder muscles, not their fingertips like they would in a glider. This means that while they KNOW what to do with the stick, they have to learn a different way to cause those movements, which takes them back to being a beginner again. In the Mach 0.1, they would have their forearm resting on their thigh, just like in the real glider, and controlling the stick with their fingertips. We have found that at the conventions, CFI-G’s who say Condor is a waste of time change their opinion after flying in the Mach 0.1. Without exception, every experienced pilot was able to fly the tow on Condor when they were in the Mach 0.1. Second, experienced pilots are hardwired to expect to feel the movement of the glider when they move the controls. When they don’t get this feedback, they instinctively move the controls more, leading to over controlling. Again, this makes some instructors think that Condor is not accurately modeling how a glider behaves. When a student, with little or no experience gets in the sim, they are controlling the glider based on visual cues, and don’t have the hard wired response yet of expecting to feel the gliders movement, so they don’t have this problem with over controlling. 

Introducing an Updated Design for the Mach 0.1

By Russell Holtz • January 9, 2019
All of the Benefits of the Original Design The MACH 0.1 allows students and pilots to do basic training, master core concepts, and explore new scenarios using soaring flight simulator software in a realistic glider cockpit configuration. The natural control layout includes stick, adjustable rudder pedals, spoilers, wheel brake, landing gear, trim, and a tow release handle. Reduce time & costs involved in training Make use of inclement weather days Practice emergency situations Concentrate on specific maneuvers Keep students engaged Enjoy more soaring time Plus Updated Design Features 4x greater control precision Integrated monitor mount Simplified assembly Modular, PCB-based design for increased reliability and serviceability
 Still Available at the economical price of just $1899 Choice of Integrated Monitor Mounts The new version of the Mach 0.1 Simulated Glider Cockpit includes an integrated monitor mount. This keeps the monitor from accidentally getting knocked over. The Standard monitor mount will fit monitors with an outside width of up to 24.25 inches. Many 27" monitors fit this criterion. This mount protects the monitor when the simulator is being moved. The screen of the monitor is set back from the frame, so it can be laid on a flat surface without touching. The standard mount accommodates monitors with a 100mm hole pattern. The Large monitor mount will hold monitors with a weight of up to 20 pounds. The large mount accommodates monitors with either a 100mm or 200mm hole pattern. Please Note: Instructor Remote is available as an optional add-on. Computer, monitor, monitor screws, keyboard, mouse, and Condor software NOT included.
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