RE: Flight Simulator
I started on Phoenix - IMO it was one of the best investments I put into this hobby, got my thumb memory sorted, helps with orientation, you can muck around with the wind and give yourself a great lesson on reacting to what your plane is doing just based on visual. Overall the physics were great, and there is a great list of (freely) upgradable planes and system upgrades, so unlike the majority of the rest, you don;t pay for any upgrades once you brought the software.
The only issues I found, spacial sense, in a 2D world, there is not a lot other than scale and noise, which makes it hard for landing as you never know which way your pointing if your looking up (I don't use the view option where land is always visible, actually makes it harder).
If possible, run it through a good sized HD tv, makes the experience that much better!
In a nut shell, this thing has saved me for $000's in broken heli's alone, so it owes me NOTHING currently!