NEWPORT NEWS, Va. — David Gatling's favorite plane is the F-16 fighter jet. In fact, he found a way to fly one.
Well, sorta.
Gatling worked on utility and Cobra helicopters while he served in the Army in the 80s, but his love for flight didn't stop there. That's why he spent months building a flight simulator.
"It actually feels real. It gives you the freedom of flight. I know it's imagination, but it's also creativity as well," said Gatling. "I never had an opportunity to fly in the fighter plane, so this gives me the feel of it."
The build has certainly taken a lot of creativity. He pressed a button on a contraption in his Newport News apartment.
"I just turned on an afterburner. Go a little faster. Didn't want to crash," said Gatling.
He made the simulator from recycled materials, at a time when he said he didn't know many people who recycled.
"This is the Aces II ejection seat. It's the replica. It's made out of wood from an entertainment center. The pads was an old yoga mat that was covered," he said, pointing to different parts of the flight simulator.
"It's a lot of cardboard," he laughed as he demonstrated how lightweight the simulator was.
He said the build totaled around $300, including a refurbished computer. The software was donated by a friend.
And it works.
"You do have to come at the right angle, the right air speed...you learn how to take off, learn how to navigate, learn how to use the weapons systems, communicate with the tower," said Gatling.
He plans to keep upgrading the electronics.
He said building this has been a lesson, too.
"Sky's the limit. You can create anything," said Gatling.
His next planned build? Model airplanes.
He's constructing planes to show the history of the Thunderbirds, from first to last.
