Military Embedded Systems

Blue Angels flight simulator gaming app available for the masses

Other

July 22, 2016

Mariana Iriarte

Technology Editor

Military Embedded Systems

Blue Angels flight simulator gaming app available for the masses
Photo by RORTOS

Gamers interested in aviation can download a new gaming app called Blue Angels ? Aerobatic SIM developed by Italian-base company RORTOS. It is a simulation game that can be played on iOS or Android smartphones for the sole entertaining purpose to fly a Blue Angels jet and virtually clone the cool stunts we only see at their air shows.

The company, RORTOS, focuses on flight simulators for mobile devices. With the game, officially released this week, gamers can replicate all official Blue Angels maneuvers and in a release, Roberto Simonetto, CEO of RORTOS, states, “Our goal was to create something new for fans of flight and the Blue Angels. By developing this flight sim, we challenged ourselves to enable players to become virtual pilots to perform the spectacular maneuvers of this well-respected and prestigious team.”

The release and the announcement came at the National Naval Aviation Museum in Pensacola, Florida during a Blue Angels show. The game, RORTOS officials say, will be available for Xbox and PC users in the future.

A couple of cool features give the user the ability to place the game in Airshow Mode to recreate and complete a real exhibition, but you can also place it in Additive mode to create your own personal aerobatic figure. When playing the game – yes, I tried it out – the system actually shows you what the stunt will look like and then with some practice or an innate ability to play video games you can perform that same stunt.

U.S. Navy officials vetted the company and game before endorsing the simulation game for users. Developers traveled to Naval Air Station in Florida, according to a NavyTimes report, and after a few visits the U.S. Navy granted RORTOS a licensing three-year deal.

The gamer can also perform special missions ranging from free flight to exploratory to a pursuit mission. The military has been moving past the old-school way of training to more simulation and pilots have been training for years using simulation methods. So, for a second, imagine that your kid picks this game up and realizes that his path in life is to fly?

Not many have earned their Blue Angels bragging rights, but with this game kids can have a visual of what the pilots are actually doing. To a certain extent, it’s free advertising for the Navy. It also becomes a recruiting tool. The more people download the game, the more exposure the Navy gets, and the more people are interested in performing some of these aerobatic stunts. Not a bad path to take in life.