There are companies in flight simulation that grow loudly, propelled by marketing cycles, rapid releases, and constant visibility. Then there are companies like Skalarki Electronics, whose reputation was built almost entirely in silence. For years, their panels appeared in certified simulators, professional training environments, and some of the most serious home cockpits in the world, often without the user knowing much at all about who built them. The hardware spoke. The people stayed behind the curtain. That was never a strategy. It was simply how things happened when engineering came first, and everything else followed later.
For context, this editorial began as a trip for AviationLads to visit and conduct a marketing video for the team. When I heard this was happening, I was keen to tag along and conduct some behind-the-scenes photography and interview the people at Skalarki. Unfortunately, due to my own sickness, I was unable to attend the filming, so I instead reached out to the team with a series of questions. I was not prepared for the detail and level of history I got from the team about how Skalarki had humble beginnings to where they are today. It struck me as an important story to tell.
The Garage Days
Skalarki’s story begins where many of the most authentic flight simulation journeys do, not with a business plan, but with curiosity. Long before the company existed, Marcin was already immersed in electronics, not as a stepping stone to entrepreneurship, but as a personal obsession. Jan explains that his father’s technical grounding predates flight simulation entirely, noting that Marcin completed his college education with a degree in electronics and spent much of his early life designing circuits, modifying hardware, and repairing equipment simply because that was what interested him. That background mattered deeply because when flight simulation hardware entered his life around 2007 to 2008, it was never approached as a consumer problem. It was approached as an engineering challenge.
“At that time, there was no intention of creating a commercial product,” Jan said. “The work was purely driven by personal interest and the satisfaction of designing and building functional electronics.”
This absence of commercial pressure shaped everything that followed. There were no deadlines to hit, no margins to protect, and no need to simplify designs to meet a price point. Marcin was building hardware the way an engineer builds for themselves, focusing on how things should work rather than how they could be sold. Like many early builders, he shared progress within the DIY flight simulation community, where forums were the backbone of knowledge exchange. But one project, an Airbus A320 Flight Control Unit, triggered a shift. As Jan recalled, once images of that FCU were shared publicly, interest quickly moved beyond casual curiosity. People began asking where it could be bought, whether more would be made, and if similar components were planned.
“It was only after Marcin shared images of his A320 FCU in progress that wider interest emerged,” Jan said. What followed was not a rapid transition into manufacturing, but years of slow, methodical work. Marcin is candid about how long this phase lasted, describing a period defined by countless hours spent on electronics design, software development, and data collection across multiple projects. This was not growth in the business sense, but growth in understanding. The breakthrough came around 2010, when a conscious decision was made to focus almost entirely on Airbus hardware, specifically the A320. It was a calculated move, rooted in the observation that professional-grade Airbus panels were largely inaccessible to serious enthusiasts, while lower-quality alternatives failed to capture the behaviour and feel of the real aircraft.
“Definitely focusing on A320 hardware around year 2010 and moving into full scale production gave us stable growth over the time,” Marcin said, reflecting on that decision as one that quietly defined the company’s future.
What made Skalarki different, even then, was how completely self-contained the operation was. Rather than assembling off-the-shelf components or relying heavily on third parties, Marcin built almost everything in-house. Electronics, firmware, 3D modelling, and interfacing software were all developed internally, creating a level of integration that few small manufacturers could match. “We created a product from nothing,” Marcin said, “and all elements like electronics design, firmware, 3D modelling and interfacing software were created by myself at our company.”
Even when help was needed, it was temporary. Marcin openly admits that software development, particularly C#, was not initially his strongest area, but rather than outsourcing long-term, he absorbed the knowledge himself. “Later I took over, and now all is done within our company,” he said, a statement that quietly explains why Skalarki hardware behaves the way it does, with tight integration and long-term consistency.
Scaling Up
As the products matured, so did the scale of the orders. When asked about Skalarki’s first major customer, Marcin hesitates, not because there were none, but because the definition of “big” kept changing. Early milestones included complete IO systems and front panels for an F-16, followed by a full MD-80 cockpit panel set, but it was Airbus that truly accelerated the company’s reputation. In 2017, Skalarki delivered five full A320 panel sets to a company in China, marking its first significant international Airbus contract.
“Our first biggest customer was a company from China […]. We did deliver them five full A320 panels sets and this was in 2017.” From there, relationships were formed with established simulator integrators such as Pacific Simulators and Simnest, embedding Skalarki firmly within the professional training ecosystem. Then came the contract that redefined scale entirely, a long-term agreement to supply 50 full shell simulators over four years. “This is for sure the biggest customer we have ever had,” Marcin said.
Skalarki officially began trading in 2012, still operating from Marcin’s garage. At that stage, there was no vision of global reach or large-scale manufacturing. “This was supposed to be a small family company consisting of me and my wife,” Marcin said, explaining that growth was never the goal in itself. The move into their first commercial unit in 2014 felt enormous, not because of ambition, but because of contrast. A 110 square metre industrial space compared to a six square metre garage felt almost excessive at the time. “This ‘huge’ empty space was begging us to do something nice there,” Marcin recalled.
US Penetration thanks to Trade Shows
Trade shows, particularly FSWeekend in Lelystad, played a quiet but crucial role in filling that space with work. Interest grew steadily, and by the end of 2014, Skalarki hired its first employee, Mirek, who remains with the company today. Mirek’s continued presence is emblematic of how Skalarki has grown, slowly, deliberately, and with a focus on long-term commitment rather than rapid turnover. Family ties deepened when Marcin’s sister Agnieszka joined the company in 2017, strengthening what had always been a family-run operation.
A defining technical milestone arrived in 2015 with the purchase of a high-end CNC machine. “This machine started a total revolution in our production quality, quantity and efficiency,” Marcin said, describing it as one of the most important decisions the company ever made. Growth followed at roughly 50 percent year-on-year, and by 2019, Skalarki employed 12 full-time staff and made its first appearance in the United States at FSExpo in Orlando, an event Marcin described as a clear turning point for US market awareness.
The COVID Effect
Then, like everyone else, Skalarki ran headlong into COVID. In March 2020, operations ceased, and the entire team was furloughed, with no clear sense of how or when normal work would resume. Rather than remaining idle, Marcin and Agnieszka redirected the company’s equipment toward producing protective visors for the NHS, operating on a purely charitable basis.
When operations resumed eight weeks later, the company experienced something entirely unexpected. Orders surged from around the world, and thanks to stock prepared for Brexit contingencies, Skalarki was able to respond quickly. By the end of 2020, the company recorded its strongest financial year ever, with 150 percent growth, funding further automation, new CNC machines, and eventually the move into a 1000 square metre industrial unit in 2021.
Today, Skalarki employs around 20 full-time staff across engineering, design, production, fulfilment, and support, with additional team members based in Poland. Jan is keen to stress that while not everyone on the team is an aviation enthusiast, every member is united by professional pride and technical discipline. “Our focus is on applying strong technical expertise, precision manufacturing, and rigorous testing to deliver the best possible product,” he said.
One of the most misunderstood aspects of Skalarki’s history is its relationship with home simulation. While many see the company as rooted in professional training, Jan explains that individual component sales were never an afterthought. From the very beginning, Skalarki made every A320 simulator component available individually, allowing customers to build at their own pace, combining DESKTOPLine and HOMELine hardware without compromise.
“A customer can combine a DESKTOPLine MCDU with a HOMELine forward overhead and use them together without compromise,” Jan said, noting that this philosophy predates many of today’s competitors by years.
A Future with Even Better Relationships
In recent years, however, Skalarki has recognised that engineering excellence alone is no longer enough. After market pressures, increased competition, and a difficult 2024 financially, the company made a conscious decision to become more visible, more open, and more human. That shift coincided with Jan joining the company in 2025 as Media Manager, redefining how Skalarki presents itself to the community.
“Our media-related approach was totally redefined,” Marcin said, explaining that this was not about marketing polish, but about transparency. This shift is perhaps best exemplified by Skalarki’s recent documentary series filmed in collaboration with AviationLads. Rather than focusing solely on products, the series opens the doors to the workshop, introduces the people behind the panels, and shows the realities of manufacturing without gloss. It reflects a belief that in today’s flight simulation landscape, trust is built not just through quality, but through connection.
Looking ahead, Skalarki’s roadmap includes expansion beyond Airbus, with Boeing hardware, particularly the 777, identified as a significant gap in the market. But more than any single product, the company’s future appears rooted in balance. Between professional and home simulation. Between engineering and communication. Between staying quietly excellent and finally letting people see why.
From a garage to a global customer base, Skalarki’s journey is not just a success story. It is a reminder that in flight simulation, authenticity is not something you bolt on at the end. It is something you build into everything, from the first solder joint to the last conversation with a customer.
If you liked what you saw, check out Skalarki’s product line-up.
