Sims are a big help. Especially when you can't fly when you want to due to weather or time constraints. I have flown both with an instructor and the sim and noticed that some of the same mistakes I've made with the instructor I've also made on the sim. Helps a lot for correcting them. Also, I think people should treat the sim as though it's the real thing and try as hard not to crash the plane as they would a real plane at the feild. The sims are nice too for trying out different types of planes and heli's. Kind of gives you an idea of how the different types react. IM