iPad Takes Off as Flight School Teaching Tool

Nicole Martinelli ()

iPad Takes Off as Flight School Teaching Tool

A stress test on the iPad. Photo courtesy James Stevenson, Virtual Aviation.

Virtual Aviation, which runs full-motion flight simulators in the UK, is using iPads as high-tech teacher’s assistants to train pilots.

Instead of instructors lugging around heavy cases filled with maps, charts, manuals, weather reports, flight plans and checklists every time they go into the simulator — they use iPads instead.

Using the iPad leaves busy instructors with an almost hands-free way to show would-be Airbus and Boeing pilots the ropes at Heathrow and Gatwick.

iPad Takes Off as Flight School Teaching Tool

iPad Takes Off as Flight School Teaching Tool

Hands on at the flight school. Photo courtesy James Stevenson, Virtual Aviation.

The location (and business) were also a fortunate coincidence that allowed them to buy iPads before they are officially available in the UK.

iPad Takes Off as Flight School Teaching Tool

Outside the simulator. Photo courtesy James Stevenson, Virtual Aviation.

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“It’s absolutely fabulous, it’s no exaggeration to say that the iPad is going to revolutionise our business, whilst being used in an unenvisaged role,” James Stevenson of Virtual Aviation said.

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About the author

nicole_martinelli

Nicole Martinelli is a San Francisco native who has lived in Milan and Florence, Italy. She's written for Wired.com, The New York Times and Newsweek. You can find her on Twitter , Facebook and Google+.

If you're doing something new/cool that's Apple related, email her about it.

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  • IcyFog

    Somebody should point this out to Obama.

  • oaia

    Thanks for the info. Love the quote “It’s absolutely fabulous, it’s no exaggeration to say that the iPad is going to revolutionise our business, whilst being used in an unenvisaged role,” James Stevenson of Virtual Aviation said. We only begin to see a glimpse of what the iPad can and will do to improve the way the society uses and shares info. It’s truly unstoppable.

  • lcoma

    And he used “whilst” and “unenvisaged” in the same breath.

  • http://www.zoomata.com Nicole Martinelli

    Icoma: I was tempted to put it into our standard American speak, but loved it too much to tinker with it…

  • Erin’s Dad

    OUTSTANDING !!!

    One more excuse for NorthWest pilots overshoot their approach by 150 miles or so.

  • http://www.virtualaviation.co.uk James Stevenson

    I never envisaged that the word ‘unenvisaged’ would cause such a stir! James

  • Steven

    We’re a couple centuries removed from the Queen’s English, so words like that are quite a novelty.

  • Mensta

    I thought the iPad is only available in the US at the moment. When did the Brits get the pad or how much money is Apple paying corpies to advertise it?

  • Ed

    I would be more interested to know what software they will be using. Will the iPad be approved by the FAA? Is it available to the general (flying) public?

  • http://www.virtualaviation.co.uk James Stevenson

    Hi Mensta/Ed, unfortunately we’re not being paid to advertise it! We bought two iPads in the US and, after a successful trial, we’ll be buying more in the UK when they’re released here on May 28th. It’s not being used in real aircraft, just in the simulator as a quicker and more efficient way to view documents. We have been using the GoodReader document manager app.