A Flight Simulator Odyssey

by Charles Gulick

An Artful Departure

Chart: Washington
Title: ARTFUL DEPART
Ground Coordinates:
   Aircraft: N16153 (16153.000), E20198 (20198.124)
   Tower: N16153.089, E20201.655
Altitude:
   Aircraft: 0
   Tower: 19
Heading: 104
Time: Daylight

Of course, as an official air courier, you have to have a flying area to depart from as well as land on when you carry messages to and from Washington. But they're not one and the same. You're looking at your departure "runway" now.

On your left is an important building virtually as handsomely detailed as the Capitol itself, the National Gallery of Art--also called The Mellon Gallery after Andrew Mellon who contributed the money to build it. It's one of the most prestigious art museums in the world. Take a good look at it early in your takeoff run.

Missing in the simulation, but located directly opposite the National Gallery of Art, is the giant Air and Space Museum that houses the Wright Brothers airplane, Charles A. Lindbergh's Spirit of St. Louis, the Apollo space capsule, and other air/space memorabilia.

This situation calls for a short takeoff, lest you violently disrupt a session of Congress or something. Pay close attention to what you're doing.

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