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With testing well under way a search for Airbus A300 parts began. I contacted Air Salvage International based at Alford and purchased a pair of A300 flight deck seats from them. Luckily they were breaking An Indian Airways A300 at Kemble and we were given the opportunity to remove any items from the flight deck that was of no commercial value. After two very productive days we headed for home with a car full of various parts for the project.
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Things were now beginning to take shape we had our procedural sim for reference and now had our aircraft seats and various parts. It was now time do decided on the way we would interface the various switches and functions that would be used in the cockpit. After looking at what was available we decided to use FSBUS. Using the great guide on building an aircraft shell by Daniel Friede and using the dimensions from our visit to Kemble and the Indian Airways A300 we were able to start work constructing our new aircraft shell
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When creating the frame we were limited in width of the sim by the space of the only room available. With our move to new building soon we will be able to create the correct width and in the some of the remaining parts we have steering tillers etc.
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Tracking down real parts from the A300 is itself a difficult task with many parts only available from aircraft breakers abroad and other sim builders. Unfortunately as more people get involved in sim building the price of second hand parts rises with the demand. With the Help of Robert Prather and his excellent sim spares and Nick at The Airline Pilots Historical Society I was able to add a lot of the missing parts from the overhead panels.
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