Hobbico NexSTAR, yesterday. It's going to be my sons and mine Christmas present. I can't wait to see his face. I was wondering if I should take out the Controller and Flight sim, and have him practice on it.... me too. It won't click that I got the plane. I could tell him that Mike ( flight instructor ) lent it to me. What do you all think? keep it packed up till XMAS or let him train for awhile and present him with the plane on XMAS?

Cheers

I'd wait for Christmas, but that's just me. Start on the flight sim now and it'll just make it harder to wait, plus, if your kid's like mine, once you start on the sim the pressure to get a real plane will begin.

go ahead and practice now on the sim.it can only help when the big day arrives.take offs on the sim are usually easy but practice the landings,that is the important part.

But then again, you don't want to develop bad habits that are incorrect ways of flying on the sim. If I were you, I'd wait until you & your son get a few flights in w/ a qualified AMA instructor, and when you have the CORRECT techniques down then you should start practicing on the simulator.

It will be more of a pain to get rid of those old simulator habits than it will be to just patiently wait.

Just my 2 cents.

BE sure to take a picture when he opens the box. I forgot to measure the diameter of my mouth when i got my first plane. [sm=eek.gif]

Tough choice. If you get out the sim now, he's going to want a plane. However, if you do let him use the sim, perhaps with some early supervision from Mike, I could see him soloing on Christmas day, or not long after. In NC flying is a 12 month sport. What might work better is for YOU to have some sessions with Mike, but not let your son know. Kids pick this stuff up much faster. Having you start early will reduce, but not eliminate, the gap. Near Christmas put the sim back in the box. If he's like many kids if he starts on Christmas day he could be ready to fly by New Years!

Mahem01,
I have to wonder as to who will be the more excitable, you or your son. How old is he? My son and I teach people to fly. I always recommend the G2/G3 flight sim first until the student can fly the planes on the sim proficiently to include taking off and landing. Then I start training them at the field. Our last two students both soloed on their fourth lessons. I tell them to keep on practicing on the sim to maintain proficiency and to try new maneuvers. There is no monetary loss when you crash on the sim. Just push the space bar and start over. I have been flying for over 12 years and I practice on my sim all the time. I am always complemented on my down the middle of the runway takeoffs, landings, low passes, and flying ability. The sime is a great confidence booster and hand/eye coordination training device. You'll have to decide what to do about the gift timing. I live in Kansas, but I still fly year round. I have flown on days when it was 25 degrees ferenheit with a light northerly breeze. Oh yes, there was also snow on the ground and ice on the pond. I hope this inspires your son to go far not only in this hobby, but in life itself. My oldest son started in this hobby at 16 and flies F-16's for the USAF today. Good luck.

"Keep 'Em Flying!"
Flak

I know that's going to be hard to wait to get started on this, but waiting will be well worth it. I agree with what was said above, please wait until you at least talk to an instructor before you get on the sim. I've seen many students come out to the field with a lot of time on the sim before they every touch a real controller. The problem is that it's very easy to pick up a bad habit or improper procedure. You have to remember that simulators are designed to allow you to hone skills by repetition, and it works no matter if you are doing it correctly or incorrectly. I've had several students come out the field that I've had to un-teach the bad habits they picked up on the simulator, and this just made the training take longer before they made it to solo. IMHO I would say to wait before you open the box and get on the simulator

On the other hand, once you have learned the basics a simulator is a fantastic way to practice what you have just learned. Once you have been taught the basics from your instructor I encourage you to spend as much time on the simulator as you can, practicing what you have learned.

That's my 2ΒΆ worth.

Ken

Good luck waiting! That's a long time to wait. You could be soloed by xmas if you start now....

Thanks for everyone input. Mike is the club instructor, we also work about 15 feet apart at work. So we talk plane. I for myself am retired from the USAF and crewed F-4 (the best looking aircarft ever to fly). And F-15's A,B,C,D, and E's. I will take a pic of Ricky's face. He is 6 but fly's the FMS sim quite well and it is keeping his interest. With all the toys out, he still has an RC plane at the top...... even over an X-BOX 360.