VR Training
Cessna 172 PreFlight Walkaround
- Released
- Seneca Polytechnic
An XR training application that lets aviation students perform a pre-flight safety inspection on a virtual Cessna 172. The app has two modes: a free walkaround to explore the aircraft, and a guided checklist mode where students inspect components. In checklist mode, simulated faults such as a damaged belt or a bird nest challenge students to spot issues they would rarely see on a pristine aircraft. Early students get familiar with the aircraft before direct access, and everyone trains on rare but critical scenarios. Integrated into the aviation curriculum, it builds procedural accuracy and safety awareness.
- Successfully deployed within Seneca's Honours Bachelor of Aviation Technology program
- Supports repeated aviation safety training in Seneca's aviation learning environment
Challenge
Aviation students rarely encounter rare-but-critical pre-flight inspection issues (damaged belts, bird nests, hidden faults) on the pristine training aircraft they actually fly, and access to a real Cessna 172 is limited. The program needed an accessible way to build procedural accuracy and safety awareness before students touch a real aircraft.
Solution
Built a virtual Cessna 172 with two modes, a free walkaround and a guided checklist, including interactive fault scenarios that simulate damaged belts, bird nests and other rare conditions. Implemented in Unreal Engine on the reusable learning framework, adapted and optimized for cross-platform delivery on Meta Quest and Windows PC.
Outcome
Successfully deployed within Seneca's Honours Bachelor of Aviation Technology program. Builds procedural accuracy and safety awareness through repeated exposure to realistic pre-flight scenarios that students would rarely see on a pristine aircraft.
Gallery
Supporting video
Contributions
- Adapted the reusable Unreal learning framework for cross-platform Meta Quest and PC delivery
- Decomposed the aircraft, its inspection procedure and its failure modes into assets, interaction logic and checklist flow
- Developed the rare-fault scenario system so students train on conditions a pristine aircraft never shows
- Implemented the aircraft scene, UI systems, walkaround flow and technical UX, and optimized for standalone VR
- Led day-to-day technical development and art production, coordinating developers and artists while collaborating with the project lead, instructional designer, faculty and subject-matter experts
