ACS arranges flight simulator shipment: for real

The Florida office Air Charter Service (ACS) recently chartered a Boeing B747 to move a 35-tonne flight simulator from Texas in the US to Japan.

Richard Thompson, president of ACS Americas, informed: “A large defence contractor contacted us earlier this year to transport a high value specialist flight simulator to Japan, in order to train the military on how to fly their recently delivered aircraft.

“It was a tricky load, as the dimensions left no room for error in fitting into the Boeing B747 – there was a mere two cm to spare,” he recalled.

Thompson continued: “The flight, including a fuel stop in Alaska, took a total of almost 16 hours and required meticulous planning for loading and offloading.

“The delivery date shifted drastically from September to June, so we had to work fast when we finally got the go-ahead. Fortunately, we had put in the work beforehand so we were ready to go.”

ACS saw the job through. “The simulator was delivered to Japan safely and on schedule,” Thompson said.

Moreover: “Over the last 12 months we have chartered B747s and AN-124s to fly four different types of flight simulators, both military and commercial, all over the world,” he added.

It is by no means just flight simulators that require ACS charters. In May and June this year, the broker chartered four AN-124 flights to move almost 400 tons of components required to complete a new power plant in Niger.

ACS offers private jet and commercial airliner as well as cargo aircraft charters, in addition to on-board courier services.