Ambitious enthusiasts buy entire Boeing 747 cockpit in race to build flight simulator — three-month project recreates gauges, dials, and other mechanical instruments for X-Plane sim

A group of flight sim enthusiasts is constructing a full flight simulator in their garage using the cockpit of an old Boeing 747-300. The team, known as the Jurassic Jets Team, is aiming to finish the simulator in time for WorldFlight 2025, a charity flight sim event. The cockpit, being fully analog, presents challenges in terms of signal processing to interact with the computer. The team is racing against time to complete the project within three months, utilizing original data from Boeing and support from pilots for authenticity. The project involves significant digital signal processing and the creation of custom parts due to the outdated nature of the cockpit.