In October 2021 the Army Flying Museum opened a new exhibition dedicated to the Apache helicopter. The museum has long hoped to acquire a real Apache helicopter as part of their collection, but at this moment in time it doesn't look possible. As part of the creative brief when we (AY-PE) pitched for the project, we suggested two touch screen interactives, and I championed the case to also include a VR experience in our submission, as I believed this would showcase the size and scale of the real Apache, given that the museum was unlikely to have the real thing on display.

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We won the project, and in preparation for the start-up meeting, I developed a VR prototype that would showcase what we could possibly do for the Apache experience. Everything shown in the prototype video was done in my own time outside of my role at AY-PE, but was done to further my knowledge of VR development, and was demo'd to the museum client as our intended approach for their VR experience. The app is running and recorded on an Oculus Quest 2. The helicopter model (a Cobra, not an Apache) was purchased from the Unity Asset Store, and I built everything else in Unity with ProBuilder. The video includes a commentary by me.

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I led the production of the VR app, in addition to doing the hands-on development work. The Apache VR experience that was delivered to the client doesn't include all the ideas from the prototype, due to timescale and budget. Being able to go outside the hangar, or into the cockpit of the helicopter have been omitted for now, but remain as options for the future. The app we delivered allows visitors to walk all the way around the Apache, get really close up to it, and also open up a selection of 'point of interest' cubes, each revealing a key component of the Apache.

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The app is installed on a number of Oculus Quest 2 VR headsets. I managed the headset setup and app deployment using the 'Oculus for Business' platform. In addition to using the headsets in the museum, they will also be taken out on location by museum staff and used at various events.

Credits

Simon Kendrew: Concept, design, software development, 3D models for hangar and number cubes, setup and deployment of headsets.

AY-PE: Helicopter 3D model

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Developed while employed as Senior Software Developer at AY-PE.