ORIGINAL: AFB2008
This is my first foray into aircraft. I have had cars for years now but looking at something different. I bought a simulator for my pc and have been spending a lot of time getting familiar with control and orientation. I fully understand that there is no substitute for real flight and flying at home on my computer is far from the real thing. That said, is there a recommended training time on the simulator before switching to the real thing? What should I expect once I hit the field? Did you find the time spent on the simulator take over once you hit the field or was it just basics and you had to learn all over again? Thanks for the feedback and advice.
First off, the best way to transition would be from your simulator time to flying on a buddy box with an experienced instructor.
Nothing on your simulator teaches you to assemble your model correctly. There is way more to flying a model than pushing the sticks the right way. Instructors can help with that.
As for time on a simulator being a set amount....... nah, nothing in life takes the same amount of time for every human who tries a new thing.
Want some advice? OK, keep flying the simulator, but find an established flying field and go talk to some of the flyers there. Just watching people doing the real thing will make your simulator time more understandable to you. And you'll see what to expect when you hit the field.
I've had students who had a bunch of sim time who were probably hurt by it. Most who had some time benefitted however. None of them crashed while flying with an instructor. And most were flying safely on their own within a decently short time.
Simulators also fall short, very short in teaching you field boundaries and where you model actually is in relationship to you, the runway, the pits, the world. Spend too much time on a sim and all of that gets harder to grasp when you walk up to the flying line with a TX in your hands. There is a real difference in the pressure you'll feel in the real world.