Chapter 1: Introduction to Space Shuttle

Space Shuttle is one of the most unique iPhone and iPod Touch applications from Laminar Research, creators of the X-Plane line of flight simulators. It is built on the same engine as X-Plane, with all the graphics and physics power that comes with it.

Each of the X-Plane-based apps for the iPhone and iPod Touch is a fun little “slice” of the X-Plane desktop flight simulator that is just the right size to run on Apple’s iPhone and iPod Touch. These apps (including Space Shuttle) are about 95% as accurate as the desktop simulator—the same simulator used by companies like Boeing, Lockheed Martin, and NASA.

In some ways, Space Shuttle is quite different from the other X-Plane-based simulators on the iPhone and iPod Touch. There is only one aircraft (the Space Shuttle) available, and instead of having four or six flight regions, Space Shuttle has five mission segments. Users can sit back and watch the Shuttle’s launch and entry into orbit, or take control of the complete re-entry (from nearly 200,000 feet), the full approach to Edwards, or the final approach.

Updates to the X-Plane Mobile applications are released periodically. As the graphics, flight model, and interface technology are improved on one X-Plane Mobile app, all the applications will be updated—for free! Much, much more is still in the wings!

The goal of the X-Plane apps for the iPhone and iPod Touch is to have most of the fun and power of the full desktop version available in a portable form. Due to these devices’ limited RAM and screen area, X-Plane is broken into a number of little “pieces” of the desktop simulator. By pricing at only $10 each, though, we can offer a pretty amazing value for these little pieces of the X-Plane desktop simulator.