Bry - I agree that real flight experience can give an RC Pilot a big advantage in many departments of the KNOWLEDGE base and I'm sure that this experience will kick in from time to time to help a new RC Pilot learn CERTAIN things more quickly and hopefully easier.

But I can see a danger here that it can also lead some pilots to over confidence and complasency. I did a bit of flight instructing in my time as well and the most dangerous pilots were the ones between 200 & 1,000 hours. I don't know what this translates to in RC time but a pilot can reach a point where he is good and KNOWS he's good and at that moment he becomes dangerous. Being "good" never means we can't be had by the overlooked or unexpected.

Certainly I don't mean any of this as a put down. I'm sure you are well on your way to becoming a fine RC pilot but something every RC jock needs to remember is the ground is only about 2 seconds away. In the world of real planes, that's one terror we rarely have to ever deal with.

Good flying! j