Project45 History

March 24th 2008: FlightSimmersion, (now known as Project45.us) is up and running and on the World Wide Web!  At this point, Project45 was in it's infancy, mostly just ideas and sketch drawings.  Like most great ideas, they start off small and drawn out at the kitchen table!

April 15th 2008:

I have completed the basic shape of the port side of the shell.  From here I refined the shell design and made these first pieces JIGS to replicate the port and starborad sides many times over.  Seeing one side was exciting but once I completed both sides and put them together for the first time, that was a priceless moment! 

May 20th 2008:

The "mock up" internal components are complete!  I built this full scale model of all the major components inside the L45 shell with half inch MDF, foam board and PVC pipe to insure correct ergonomics, measurements and angles.  I invested approximately 60 hours of time and $100 to this important process. 

June 5th 2008:

I received my first orders for three shells!  To date, I have developed L45-001 (The Port side Jigs), L45-002 (Flagship), L45-003 (Eric Tomlin's Shell), L45-004 (J.C.'s shell) and L45-005 (Rick Trantham's shell).  I have also developed the "mock up" internal components and started work on the Shell Assembly Manual, (SAM) with step by step construction techniques.  What is even more exciting is that several FS enthusiasts in Europe have also taken notice of this new L45 cockpit shell!  Here is a photo of L45-004 sitting to the left of L45-002.

July 23rd 2008:

Phase 5 which included painting all of the frame pieces and reassembly is now complete.  From this point on, the shell will not be taken apart with the exception of splitting it down the middle to move  through a doorway to it's future home once it is ready.  The frame has also been bolted to the base with wheels  for additional strength. The frame is surprisingly strong even without the aluminum, foam and fiberglass installed!

September 17th 2008:

I have been doing all the recent construction of the shell in my father's spacious A/C cooled  work shop about three miles down the road. Thanks dad, Ron Sr. for letting me use the garage, tools and lending a helping hand.  Here is a sneak peek of the shell about half way through Phase 9, Fiberglassing.

October 5th 2008:

I am pleased to announce that in the up and coming weeks,  Hangar45 will be launched showcasing the Worlds Learjet45 Flight Simulator builders and their projects!  This site will be the "Hub" for all Lear enthusiast and a place to park their Cyber Jets.  You will find forums with Lear specific information, Build Stories and technical data that the individual builders wish to share with the community.  Hangar45 will have countless links to the builders, suppliers and related sites to help the new guy get started on their own project!

October 24th 2008:

My wife Michelle and I just got back from a much needed week long vacation in Gatlinburg Tennessee.  One of the highlights (for me) was picking up a new CNC machine in Ashville North Carolina on the way up. The CNC machine will enable me to create my own parts and duplicate them easily after I get the hang of it.

November 7th 2008:  Hangar45 is now open to the public!  This site is an International Learjet45 club with eleven Founding Charter Members.  The website was created to provide a forum to share building techniques, ideas and to share Lear specific information with home flight deck builders.  It was also created to provide a club-atmosphere for those that have decided to build and simulate one of the most famous aircraft ever built........... A Learjet!

November 25th 2008:

I acquired an authentic set of Learjet45 throttle levers, a spoiler arm and a flaps arm which are hard to come by as you can imagine.  Thank you to Kris Stow, (R.I.P. Kris passed away on June 17th 2010) for helping me and several other members of Hanagr45 acquire these priceless authentic parts!

December 16th 2008:  The shell (L45-002) is finally complete after nearly a year of hard work!  I will be painting the shell a semigloss white with a blue and yellow stripe down both sides in the next few weeks.  I will also be working to fit the windscreens into the shell.

January 1st 2009:

The L45-SAM "Shell Assembly Manual" is finally here!  This is revision 5, the latest version of the "SAM" and the first being released to the general public. The Adobe PDF file can be down loaded from the Technical Information page!

January 23rd 2009: Development of the control column system is taking shape! To date most of the components are in place and working very well.  It runs across the top of the sub floor but under the raised floor sections.  In addition, I have decided to design and make all of my own control panels in the flight deck using my CNC machine and a laser engraver that I have access to.

February 21st 2009:  Important news! Flight Simmersion is changing it's name to PROJECT45!  You will be able to continue to follow the progress on the L45 build on this new website after March 15th 2009.  Thanks for the support and interest.

March 4th 2009:

Tom Goldberg from Deer Park Washington is one of our latest Hangar45 club members. Tom has a 4'X8' Water Jet CNC capable of cutting out aluminum.  Tom graciously cut out the MIP, Glare Shield and the two TQ access doors for myself and Eric Tomlin. Tom has also ordered airframe L45-006!  Thank you Tom!

March 29th 2009:

L45-007 in kit form has been completed and shipped out to one of our newest members of Hangar45.  Shane Barnes is located in Mt. Sterling, Kentucky.  Shane plans to take his project to all new heights!  Check out his build thread HERE

June 24th 2009:

The 389 Replicas are here and available to the members of Hangar45! The set includes over 200 laser engraved and cut parts to complete every Chromolux 389 switch found in the L45 flight deck.  If interested in a set of your own, please contact me at ronjonrollo@yahoo.com

December 7th 2009:

My wife Michelle and I have decided to move into a larger home!  This gave me the perfect opportunity to look for a home that would accommodate my hangar bay.  In this case, it is a spare room up stairs with a storage room off to the side and a head.

February 15th 2010:

The shell has been moved the from the work shop to the new house.  The windscreen has been completed and the shell is now painted. With the help of my good friend "Venny", we carefully moved the two sections up the stairs into the new hangar bay!

February 22nd 2010:

It was time to finally fly this bad boy even if it meant bare bones with a stripped down version of FS2004, a CH yoke and a set of CH pedals!  I also spent $50 and about 10 hours making up a set of temporary seats to hold me over until I have time for the real ones.  I feel like I am half way done, FINALLY!!!

April 19th 2010:

I have started work on the Throttle Quadrant Module design.  To date, I have one complete set sent off to Eric Tomlin and a TQ Module kit sent off to Tom Goldberg.  I have at least four more sets to build including my own. Keep in mind that the TQ module kit is designed for the real parts only. To see more information on the Throttle Quadrant, go to the Flight Controls page.

August 18th 2010:

I decided to make the shell plans available especially for members of Hangar45 who are overseas or enjoy the wood working elements of the project.  I sold my first set of paper plans, L45-009 to Willie Wilson in Texas!

September 22nd 2010:

The rudder pedals and rudder pedal covers are complete.  I have a tutorial of how I made the rudder pedal covers HERE  For more information about the rudder system and the other majot flight contols, go to the Flight Controls page.

November 10th 2010:

I finished my TQ Module including two other complete sets and five TQ Module kits for other Hangar45 members.  They include Detents, Thrust Revereser, APR, Fuel Cutoff Notches, Go Around, and Mute buttons.  To see more of how I completed the TQ module, click HERE

January 23rd 2011:

I completed the construction of shell kit L45-010 and it's sister ship, L45-011 in just over three weeks with the help of my father, Ron Sr. Thanks dad!  L45-010 will be shipped off to Texas to Hangar45 member, Kris Stow. L45-011 will sit in waiting for a sim builder and pilot.

February 19th 2011:

I completed my 210 degree curved projection screen frame system.  It is a 6 foot radius and 24 feet long that will require three short throw projectors and a TH2Go and Nthusim warping software.  Check out my Project45 tutorial on how to build your own curved projection screen HERE

March 17th 2011:

I have started the panel building!  As always, my goal is to make myself some of the best panels possible and then make them available to the members of Hangar45.  I started with the Reversion Panels because they are small and the R&D that needed to go into the back lighting process.

June 30th 2011:

I regret to have to post this news but our friend Kris Stow passed away on June17th 2011 after being hit by a drunk driver in Houston Texas. We will keep his wife Erin and his two children, Cortnee and Cameron in our prayers. RIP Kris Stow 1979-2011

August 25th 2011:

I have been working on the lower panels, back lighting, wiring, 12 volt power supplies and interfacing.  I have the RMUs, DUs and the two Reversion panels installed.  I have also installed the lighting channels using PWM dimmers.  A dual 12 volt 30 AMPs each power supply system with a second layer of relay hardware will allow the Jet45 AAS software to control the flow of power to the flight deck as close as possible to the real L45.  Over one mile of wire will be used in the simulator once complete!

September 14th 2011: Mark Speechley from Traralgon Victoria Australia is one of our latest members at Hangar45.  Mark is also the first member to order a set of shell plans outside of the U.S.A.  Keep an eye on his progress with L45-012 HERE

January 3rd 2012:

I have completed ten HSI center standby gauges which they have all sold! My HSI design has lighting built into the bezel and the artificial airplane is adjustable up and down.  Believe it or not, there are nearly 50 parts to this piece! To read more about the HSI gauge, Altimeter and Airspeed bezels click HERE

February 18th 2012:

The Davtron Clocks are installed and working just as they do in the real world L45. The functions includes GMT, LT, FT and ET.

The computers have arrived and are built up and operational. I have decided to go with FSX and switch over to Prepare3D in the future.   The Server-PC is has an i7 2600K Intel chip and a EVGA 580 videocard. For more information and specs, please go to my

Technical Information page.

April 15th 2012: 

Steve Muzyka in Canada has placed an order for shell L45-016, the major interior parts including the MIP, Glare shield, Center Pedestal, TQ Pedestal and Lower Control column set.  L45-016 has made it's way to Canada, marking the first shell kit to be shipped outside of the U.S.A.!

June 2nd 2012:

Project45 Products and Pricing Guide!  The Products and Pricing Guide is now available upon request via email in PDF format.  Over the past few years, I have developed several items and products specifically for the L45 project. If you are thinking about building your own home built L45 simulator and would like to see what I can do to help, just email me! ronjonrollo@yahoo.com 

August 2nd 2012:

The column heads including seven additional sets for other Hangar45 members are completed.  I still need to fabricate the column head covers but that should be fairly straight forward.  In a few weeks I hope to find the time to actually connect the "roll" axis.

September 29th 2012: This date marks a milestone in the history of Project45 and Hangar45.  Alan Norris, Eric Tomlin along with his friend Matthew,  Mike Badger with his friend Greg all met up here in Jax Florida for the first ever Hangar Day!  Thanks to Eric for helping to get the simulator to communicated with the computers!  And thanks to Mike and Greg for sticking around a few extra hours to help with the throttles!

July 15th 2013:

The simulator is VFR operational!  The flight controls are operational from both the Captain's side and the First Officer's side which makes it a complete joy to fly with a friend.  Also installed are the glare shield, Engine Start Panel, EFIS panels, stick shakers, Davtron Clocks, Hobbs Meter, and an FDS knob set.

August 2th 2013:

I purchased a CDR (Clearance Delivery Radio) from Eric Tomlin made in cooperation with Ruscool Electronics Ltd. This unit will bring an operational radio to the simulator which will enables me to tune in different NAV and COM frequencies for VOR, ILS, etc.  To learn more about teh CRD click HERE

September 7th 2013:

The simulator is now IFR operational with a working FGC. (Flight Guidance Controller) Myself and Eric Tomlin teamed up to bring this unit to reality.  Eric designed the front back lit panel and I created the FGC unit itself.  Both of these elements are designed to mesh perfectly with one another.  To see more information on the Flight Guidance Controller click HERE

December 27th 2013:

My wife Michelle and I picked up a 2013 Z51 Corvette Stingray!  Is it by accident it is in the same blue and yellow colors as the Project45 flight simulator??  This photo was taken at the Northeast Florida Regional Airport with a Lear45 in the back ground and a Lear60 off to the right!

April 23th 2014:

Shane Barnes and I teamed have teamed up and knocked the CDU (FMS) out with one swift stroke!  Shane has been able to source several real FMS faces and I developed the FMS backer which interfaces with the sim. To learn more about the CDU development click HERE

June 7th 2014:

Myself and Eric Tomlin have finalized the FGC and have started work on the EFIS panels for other members of Hangar45.  In addition to that, we have started work on the Pitch Trim Control Panel.  Other major panels will fallow until everything in the Leaer45 is covered!

November 13th 2014:

In early October I met up with Shane Barnes in Gatlinburg Tennessee and picked up the five major fiberglass interior pieces from him.  This set consist of the center post, two overheads and the two side wall pieces. These are in raw form and are going to take a few months to get worked into the sim.  Follow the build thread HERE

November 30th 2014:

I have my third computer, Client2-PC built and running.  I wanted to get this third computer running prior to doing any testing with the beta CDU software so that I have an efficient system.  Go to the Technical Information page if you want to take a look at all of my computer specs.

January 16th 2015:

ForeFlight has come out with Synthetic Vision software that provides a backup glass cockpit on your iPad that can help you stay aware of your position in normal and emergency operations.  This program runs on my iPad and connects to the Sever-PC via WiFi.  For more information on the software, click HERE  If you would like to read more about Synthitic Vision in my sim, click HERE

May 8th 2015:

I am excited to announce that we are starting development of the Project45 RMUs and DUs.  We should have a working prototype within six weeks. 

Additionally, over the past few months I have been working at getting the sim back up with Prepare3D v2.5.  The new sim will be an improvement over FSX but there have been a few growing pains along the way. Some of the programs are having issues aligning with P3D, but I should be able to overcome that.  I did a complete reformat and have been able to correct a few older issues as well.