Simulators are not Airplanes

Training is only as good as the teacher. When using a sim, even solid instruction can be unnecessarily inefficient (expensive), defeating the simulators major advantage.

Editorial Staff

Wednesday, October 15, 2014 at 12:00 AM ET

Verified

Key Takeaways:

Ineffective flight simulator instruction often wastes time and money by failing to leverage the simulator's unique advantages, such as treating it like an actual aircraft or inefficiently practicing procedures.
Effective simulator training requires instructors to define specific tasks per session, efficiently position students for focused, repetitive practice, and identify and address individual weaknesses.
Instructors should utilize simulator-specific features like the pause button for discussions, allow students to experience the consequences of decisions, and avoid teaching a "real airplane lesson" in the sim.

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Training is only as good as the teacher. When using a sim, even solid instruction can be unnecessarily inefficient (expensive), defeating the simulator’s major advantage.

For example, one CFII started each lesson on the ground, going through the start-up, taxi and takeoff. But, this student was well versed in ground procedures and just needed some VOR work. He paid for a lot of wasted time. Another CFI wasn’t sure how to reposition his student to repetitively practice procedure turns, so he vectored him all over the imaginary skies.