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Simulator Training Helps You Fly Your Ideal Aircraft Better

A chance encounter with a flight simulator convinces the author that he needs to spend more time with it.

Pilots can get valuable practice on simulators that are available at many airports. [Credit: Shutterstock]
Gemini Sparkle

Key Takeaways:

  • Initially skeptical, the author found a basic flight simulator surprisingly realistic, causing fatigue, target fixation, and minor motion sickness.
  • He encountered challenges with sensitive controls and judging distances, especially when a sudden, "frighteningly realistic" Instrument Meteorological Conditions (IMC) scenario was introduced.
  • The IMC experience quickly demonstrated the fatigue and loss of control that can occur, highlighting the critical importance of instrument scanning and making the author highly recommend simulator training for instrument flight preparation.
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I finally flew on a simulator last week after years of making excuses to avoid doing so. I always figured I spent enough time flying in the real world and did not need to buzz around virtual airports in my spare time.

I was wrong. While visiting a fellow pilot in Michigan, he mentioned having a simulator available at his airport. After finding out that I had no sim experience, he essentially insisted that I give it a try.

Jonathan Welsh

Jonathan Welsh is Lead Editor of Aviation Consumer and a private pilot who worked as a reporter, editor and columnist with the Wall Street Journal for 21 years, mostly covering the auto industry. His passion for aviation began in childhood with balsa-wood gliders his aunt would buy for him at the corner store. Follow Jonathan on Twitter @JonathanWelsh4

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