I can't believe someone would discount the importance of having a simulator to get one used to the controls. Sure, I bet a lot of these guys probably received their training by having someone take off and land their first flghts but that isn't as affective as having a person KNOW and UNDERSTAND the controls and the reactions of planes PRIORto their first experience when they take control of the plane. This is 2011 people. They don't stick American Airline pilots in the seat of a cockpit and say...."hey boy, I'll get'r up and you can fly it from there" DUH. Give ANYONE the chance to learn everything they can at a leisurely pace before that first flight is ONLYa benefit. Let them understand the reactions and possible counter-reactions it takes to fly and save these planes for that dreaded Glad Bag. I agree with you totally. Sit behind that simulator for a few weeks and soak up some REAL learning, read some books, get a flying trainer buddy and go crash a few planes!
ORIGINAL: GadgetGeek
Hi Brian;
You have gotten a lot of great advice. One other thing I would mention is that flight simulators vary tremendously in how difficult they are to fly compared to the real thing. Although the real thing is always harder than flying on a simulator, the better simulators (i.e Real Flight, Aerofly, Phoenix, Clearview) will speed your learning curve up tremendously. You can even change flight conditions (i.e. add wind and change the wind direction) which will really challenge you. Clearview is by far the cheapest and comes with lifetime upgrades. Hope this helps and good luck.
Mel
P.S. I have greatly modified my Super Cub and it is still one of my favorites out of many planes to fly.