The simulator is the real one that Air Canada pilots train on to get rated for the aircraft...so everything in the cockpit is identical to an actual plane. Using Disney ride style hydraulics, the plane moves, shutters and sounds just like the real deal. Apparently crashing the simulator has been known to traumatize more than one aspiring pilot.
Both PJ and I struggled to get a smooth, all-the-passengers-clapping type of landing, but were happy to be able to say that everybody made it out alive on each of our circuits.
While I'm not about to run out and get the latest version of flight simulator or try to join Air Canada, it was a really cool experience and a fun afternoon. Our guide Terry let us buzz skyscrapers downtown, simulate almost zero visibility, fly at night and have an engine fire. Maybe the coolest part was finally having enough leg room on an Air Canada flight.
