My family bought me the GP original Real Flight sim for Christmas a few years back. I was already into my third plane (no, none have crashed) and though it would be good to practise aerobatics as I was a little vervous to try them on the real thing. I found the sim was pretty good in that you never had to be concerned if it got smucked up, but I found the landing was not really that realistic. Yes, it did help me when the winter was over and flying season began but the risk factor returned when flying for real! I think for a raw beginner it would a very useful tool, especially with orientation. Maybe the new generation of sims are more realistic when landing in which case it would be very useful. All in all, my personal feeling is that it would be great for a beginner but that the usefullness of the sim would deterioate as your skills get better and better.....just my .02$ worth. Feel free to disagree.

Cheers
Mike