Fans of the newest movie in the Top Gun franchise now have the opportunity to live the movie for themselves. A flight simulator experience in the UK allows movie fans to conduct the same missions seen in the critically successful Top Gun: Maverick movie released this summer.
Fly a Top Gun mission yourself
If you’ve ever wanted to know what it’s like to fly a fighter jet like an F-35 and carry out a top-secret mission, now’s your chance. Vantage Simulations, a flight simulator company based at Little Gransden Airfield in Bedfordshire, UK, are offering a flight simulator package built around the hit movie Top Gun: Maverick.
The 60-minute experience will involve conducting two missions seen in the movie inside a replicated F-35B Lightning II fighter jet cockpit. The cockpit includes HOTAS (Hands On Throttle and Stick) flight controls, a 22-inch touchscreen panel, and landing gear and STOVL (short take-off and vertical-landing) buttons.
The flight simulator utilizes three 1080p HD projectors on a curved screen for a truly immersive experience. While the simulator is static and does not move like some flight simulators do, the company states that it incorporates “state-of-the-art transducers, that really make you feel you’re in a real aircraft.”
The Top Gun: Maverick simulator package is currently priced at £99 ($117). The minimum age is 10 years old, while up to four spectators are allowed.
Two missions from the movie
The first mission of the day is called “Mission 1: Maverick Sidewinder.” Just like in the movie, you’ll need to train for your daring final mission to maximize your chances of success. This mission will involve taking off from China Lake NAWS air base (where Top Gun: Maverick filming took place) and flying to the “sidewinder” valley seen in the movie. Here you will practice low-level flying, avoiding enemy radar, and carrying out a missile strike on a simulated target.
Once your training is complete, your second assignment will recreate the dramatic final mission of this summer’s standout hit, titled “Mission 2: Maverick Dagger One.” After taking off from an aircraft carrier using the jet’s SVTOL capabilities, stealthily infiltrate enemy airspace and launch a strike on a uranium processing facility deep in the mountains, before dog-fighting your way back to safety.
While the movie never explicitly names which country Pete Maverick (played by Tom Cruise) and his teammates are sent to attack, the scenario and landscape are clearly based on Iran.
About the F-35B fighter jet
The F-35 Lightning II is a fighter jet developed by American aerospace and defense manufacturer Lockheed Martin, with partners including British company BAE Systems. The F-35B, the SVTOL variant of the F-35, entered service with the US Marine Corps in 2015. Several countries have F-35s in their arsenal, including the UK, Israel, South Korea and Australia.
In Top Gun: Maverick, the team doesn’t actually fly the F-35B as it was deemed vulnerable to local enemy jamming equipment. Instead, the mission is carried out by older F-14s, while the actors trained for their roles in F-18s. Vantage Simulations has two identical F-35B simulators and offers enthusiasts the chance to fight each other in the skies in the UK’s only multiplayer fighter jet simulator.
Source: simpleflying.com