High school students certified as Redbird sim technicians

The Lakeland Aero Club at Lakeland Linder International Airport (KLAL) in Florida needed to move its Redbird FMX Full-motion Flight Simulator 60 feet.

The club, part of the Aerospace Center for Excellence on the SUN ‘n FUN campus, had initially put the flight simulator in an office area in its hangar. It sat between the outside doors and the refrigerator — an area with a lot of foot traffic.

In use, the 1.25-ton mechanical beast moves with a 50° pitch, 60° yaw, and a 40° roll. It posed a potential hazard to people walking around it.

The club wanted to move the simulator into a dedicated space that fit the clearance requirements for full-motion use. What had been a carport became the new Redbird Flight Simulator room. In addition to having the simulator in a space all its own, the new room can also go pitch black. 

Back in 2017, students Sean Stoltz and Katie Esker trained in Austin, Texas, to become certified Redbird technicians. Esker graduated in 2019. Sean Stoltz graduates this year. To move the simulator and to maintain it in the future, new students needed training and certification.

Kenyon O’Dell has worked as an installation manager at Redbird for 10 years. He trained Sean Stoltz and Katie Esker in 2017.

“It was really delightful to work with them,” he recalled. “They were champs.”

According to Jeff Matthyssen, Redbird Flight Simulations’ Director of Customer Support, the company typically trains and certifies people at its headquarters in Austin. But they made an exception for the Lakeland Aero Club. 

In January, Kenyon flew from Austin to the Lakeland Aero Club in Lakeland, Florida, to train five students to become certified Redbird technicians.

“I was looking forward to working with Sean again,” he said. “I was sorry I didn’t get to see Katie. She’s in college now.”

During their training, the students disassembled, moved, reassembled, calibrated, and tested the flight simulator.

Kenyon said he usually trains people in their 20s, 30s, and 40s.

“I really enjoyed working with the students because they wanted to learn,” he said. “You have to find what lights you up. I could tell they were passionate. Sean is the team leader and it’s really great to see. Training them was no problem at all. I gave them the manual and they did it.” 

“I worked with different students each day,” he continued. “It took a day, a day and a half to move the simulator. We did training at the same time. We did all the calibrations, pitch, roll, and yaw. Then they got inside it and the students loved doing the rides.”

By the time the Redbird FMX Full-Motion Simulator was ready to operate in its new room, students Colby Lee, Jacob Stoltz, Kyle Nabb, Chris Bruckner, and Ari Seaman had earned their certifications as Redbird Simulator Technicians.

“I can’t say it enough how great it was to work with students who have such a passion for aviation,” Kenyon said.