IAMS Interactive Airport Multiplatform Simulator

VIDEO

An airport is a complex structure, with a huge number of flights and passengers requiring 24/7 support.
Every day in the world thousands of air traffic controllers are able to quickly and safely manage all traffic operations.
The complex interactions between them and the pilots are fascinating, and yet mostly unknown to the general public.

In these pages FSC is proud to present the IAMS project: a technological system in which the control tower (ATC) and the airliners interact in a simulated environment.
In this high-tech attraction, guests will be able to pilot a flight simulator or take part in ATC operations in a situation similar to reality.
The IAMS is a “techno-system” where its single parts interact for an accurate simulation of flight and airport traffic on ground or air (ATC), ideal for training, entertainment and educational applications.

FSC has dedicated a lot of time on the IAMS project.
The graphic renderings you will see in these pages are the result of our engineers’ and technicians’ commitment and years of work, succeeding in designing the most complex airport simulation system in the world.
The FSC team has acquired all these skills thanks to the fact that, over the past 10 years, it has autonomously engineered, built and assembled, many simulator parts; We have installed and integrated visual technologies with high performance computer systems; whilst our graphic designers have created high-definition scenarios on which users can fly and practice, and also designed and integrated complex systems to replicate realistic resistance and forces on the flight controls...

Unique in its kind in the world It is called IAMS

IAMS: WHAT DOES IT DO?

It changes the point of view of users, granting the control of the flight from another perspective, and showing behind the scenes of the main flight operations.
It allows, therefore, to know the functioning of an airport and to experience it from an unprecedented point of view, through a hyper-realistic simulation of what is not normally seen.

IAMS: PROTAGONISTS OR SPECTATORS?

The IAMS can be experienced in three different ways, and each guest will be able to live them all in a single visit.

1) AS PROTAGONIST - : the simulators integrated in the IAMS system allow the user to perform the following operations independently or with the help of qualified personnel:

•  flight booking
•  boarding with captain role in the cabin (assisted by another commander and by ATC)
•  ramp area procedures
•  take-off/landing authorization (ATC)
•  realistic take-off, flight and landing

2) AS SPECTATOR - : users who do not take active part in the flight operations have the opportunity to watch other users engaged in their flights (take-offs and landings from the same airport synchronized with all other simulators). Spectators will be able to see both the cockpit live with the “pilots” involved in the various operations, or watch the flight, from an external and panoramic point of view, through the monitors mounted above each simulator.

3) ATC LOUNGE - : users in the ATC lounge will be able to observe, on a 360° visual system, what happens on the runways with departing and arriving flights. They have the opportunity to watch the activity of the ATC operators that manages air traffic in real time through the consoles interacting with the simulators.

Simulation systems like the IAMS are attracting more and more interest, even from users generally not interested in flight simulation.
The main reason is that civil aviation in recent years is facing a radical change, essentially for two causes: the air traffic is constantly increasing (it is estimated to double every twenty years), but also because in recent years the increase of air travel security has made the cockpit accessible (and visible) solely to authorized personnel.

As a result, today’s passengers feel the need of a new awareness and understanding of the main flight operations.
One of the main goals of the IAMS is, therefore, to clarify why the air travel is the safest way to travel in the world, how this has been achieved, and how the challenges of the future in terms of safety are being addressed.

IAMS is a large modular project, customizable in every part thanks to the ten-year experience of FSC in the field of simulator manufacturing.
The Simulators (FTD level) are installed on the ground floor of the structure’s outer ring. The simulators will be located along the perimeter of the IAMS.
The entry and exit routes on opposite sides of the structure have been studied, to manage the optimal flow of people visiting the inner areas of the IAMS.
On the ground floor, inside the structure, is located the machine room: the technological heart of the entire IAMS system. Each simulator works thanks to a reliable system consisting of 11/14 Super-PCs integrated on racks and synchronized on a 1Gbps LAN.
All this to ensure a smooth scenery flow with a minimum guaranteed speed of 40 FPS.

On the outside of the structure, above each simulator, are placed a series of HD / UHD screens synchronized with their relative cockpit, providing an external sight of the current flight with a breath-taking panoramic view. Each simulator is the perfect replica of a modern airliner cockpit, with faithfully reproduced and fully functional Avionic instruments, granting the most realistic and professional educational involvement during the experience.
Appropriate set-up tools simplify certain procedures allowing their use to guests with different levels of ability.

To meet the specific requirement of each project, the IAMS can be customized in different configurations, from a simple and more compact single floor structure, lodging the simulators, reception and control room; to a more complex and large structure with several different simulators on the ground floor, and a second floor customizable with an ATC simulator or Food Court / relax area, both with a 360° view of the chosen airport.

Below you will find a series of configurations designed to meet the most diverse needs concerning location, budget, size...

 IAMS: WHICH APPLICATIONS?

 ENTERTAINMENT

•  Entertainment at the highest emotional impact and educational value
•  Great attraction and Hi-Tech qualification in any location you install a IAMS (shopping center, museum center, flight school or hotels)

 EDUCATIONAL

•  Flight training for aspiring Pilots or enthusiasts with different degrees of experience
•  Advanced teaching application on how an airport works when concerning interaction with pilots taking off, landing or manoeuvring on the ground.
  All flight operations can be regulated by “real” flight control ATC, or managed independently bypassing ATC
•  Interactive ATC and Flight simulation connected with real intercom
•  Crew Coordination Training (co-pilots and flight attendants)
•  Recurrency training specific to the cockpit

 BUSINESS MODELS

In the medium / large IAMS configurations (with 6 or more simulators) the space of the ATC Lounge can host multiple commercial and entertainment activities.
To the technological value of the IAMS, is possible to add structures and interiors made with valued materials and furnishings, even of customized design, which make the IAMS a destination for several guests, drawn not solely by the flight simulation opportunity.

Restaurants, relax areas, game rooms, but also museums, bookstores and flight training schools can be easily integrated into the IAMS system, ensuring the inclusion of commercial activities that will bring revenues necessary to cover the costs of managing the system itself.
Adequate business models shall be analysed in detail depending on the location where the IAMS will be installed.
However, the high level of exclusive entertainment will undoubtedly bring new customers to the area, providing also a leisure alternative to users not involved in purchases.
 

In order to provide the users a unique experience, FSC offers a wide range of simulators that can be installed in the IAMS system.
The available range of simulators is extensive with customizable solutions. FSC provides several turnkey configurations of the B737 range, with different visual system solutions: a 180° visual system with 7 monitors and a global resolution of 17.920 x 1.600; a 180° projection visual system with three high brightness and contrast DLP FULL-HD video projectors.

A version with 4K monitors is also available.
Some configurations are available in the 4-seats version (pilot + co-pilot + 2 passengers) to allow more guests living this thrilling experience at the same time.
The MTHS helicopter simulator can also be integrated into the IAMS system.
The big news of 2019 will be the inclusion of the new Airbus A320 Flight Simulator, entirely designed and manufactured by FSC in all its components.
All simulators have realistic instrument and components, designed and built for intensive use.
Each system will be completely assembled and extensively tested in the FSC facilities in Italy to meet the highest standards of reliability.
 

Each cockpit is equipped with realistic features.
The entire flight instrumentation is a fully functional replica of the real one. The main flight controls have been designed, manufactured and assembled directly by FSC, and represent a unique and innovative solution in the field of flight simulation.
The primary flight controls (Yoke and Rudder Pedals) may feature the Dynamic Control Loading technology. The Dynamic Control Loading is a system applying a variable resistance to flight controls, and when used with autopilot it moves the controls themselves.
Through precise and reliable electric motors, it provides a realistic feedback on the flight controls, varying according to the air pressure exerted on the aircraft surfaces.
All vibrations of the aircraft are controlled and simulated, including the ones caused by the engine on the controls (intensity, hertz frequency…).

The cockpit is equipped with a High fidelity Audio Surround system, and an HD or UHD visual system with either LCD screens or video projectors.
All finishes have been selected with care to the detail, in order to achieve the maximum realism during flight.

 

TAll operator stations are positioned to face outward, for a clear view of the airport through the 360° monitors visual system.

Each station is equipped with:
 

•  Radar and weather display, to monitor any relevant information, including details of incoming and outgoing flights
•  Control panel to manage, check and record flights data
•  Multiple channel Intercom system for selective communication with other ATC operators or with the flight crew

A dedicated simulation software, developed by FSC, interfaces ATC operators with flight simulators for the most interactive experience.
To land or take off, the crew of each simulator needs to contact the ATC with a proper request and receive relative instructions in return.
Verbal communications will happen in real time through the dedicated Intercom system.

FSC has designed and developed a dedicated booking system to easily manage the complexity of flight reservation for each customer, avoiding overlapping and double reservation.

It is possible to book a flight in two ways:
 

•  ON-LINE: by filling out a registration form on a dedicated web page
•  ON-SITE: customers may book their flight on the IAMS at the Info-Point or any other appointed location equipped with a Booking Tablet

In both cases, a boarding pass is created, as a reminder for the customer of the reserved flight.
All reservations will be synchronized in real time with all the connected simulators.
They will be visible on displays installed next to each simulator and on the IAMS’s central reception area.

Each simulator is provided with extremely detailed sceneries of the whole Italian territory and its 50 primary airports, as well as the major European airports, each with a photo-realistic surrounding area of approximately 50 km (+/- 25km).

FSC is organized with an internal department, which employs numerous 3D graphic designers, that creates photo-realistic sceneries of airports and of the world, according to the availability of airport technical drawings and/or updated orthophotos.
When a new airport is built or expanded, FSC ensures the upgrade of its sceneries, constantly updating the available scenery database also for all its previous simulators.
 

Each simulator has a special Advanced Operational Panel (A.O.P.) touch screen to grant a fast, easy and complete management of the system.

Some of the remotely controlled features are:
 

•  Quick positioning on any airport runway
•  Date, time and weather conditions
•  Airport, runway and livery selection
•  External view setup (camera position etc. )
•  Simulator Maintenance (advanced use)

Through this easy and intuitive interface, the operator will be in total control of the simulator, and of most of the A.S.V. (Ambience-Scenery-Variables) without ever having to leave the cockpit.

 

The IAMS project has not been left just on paper, but has “come to life” on various occasions and has met its greatest success at Expo2015, the universal exhibition held in Milan.

Inside the Etihad Airways and Alitalia pavilion a real IAMS system was created with the installation of 2 and 4-seater B737 simulators, a General Aviation MTGS330 simulator for people waiting, acceptance with a reservation system synchronized with the numerous bookings arrived online.

The numbers speak of an unparalleled audience and media success: more than 100,000 visitors at the stand, more than 21,500 flights on simulators, all sold out for the duration of the event.

In this intensive flight simulation experience, the reliability of the entire IAMS system has amazed everyone, since there were no downtime in the 6 months of daily operation, despite such intense use and with such demanding customers.
It should be remembered that the FSC staff, with its technicians and facilitators, was always present during the event to offer technical assistance and training to all users engaged in the flight.