I am looking into buying an Avistar from hobbico first of all do you think that is a good choice. second what planes on the Real flight simulator are similar to the avistar
Thanks

Nick

Nick,
The Avistar is a good flying plane, I put an ARF version together a couple of years ago for a friend and it fly fine. I was able to train him fairly easy. But my personal opinion the SIG LT-40 (kit or ARF) is the best trainer out there. I have had trainees solo quicker on the LT-40 than any other trainer. It is so forgiving and stable, especially in turns. The only thing I would suggest if you get one is to replace the Elevator and Rudder pushrods that come in the kit. They have a tendency to expand and constrict drastically with the change in temperature.

As for your question on the flight simulator. I have been using the PT40 to train people during the winter months. It seems to fly realistically. Just remember when you fly on the computer you don't get the peripheral and ground reference as you would at the field.

I agree with Fun2Fly. The Kadet LT-40 is the best trainer out there. I have been teaching students for years and I've flown almost every trainer made. The LT-40 is by far the best. The 70" wingspan really makes a difference. Our club has 7 LT-40's, both ARF's and kit built, that we use for training our student pilots---we provide the plane, radio, fuel and instructor for new students. Put an OS .46 AXI on it and you have a great combination that will serve you a long time.

Rich

For the simulator, I used the PT-40 as well. You can also go into the options and add what engine you are using, and check against other specs of the Avistar. That's what I did, and I found both to fly almost identically. Although, I will say that take off and landing on the simulator has a lot to be desired over real conditions. I also picked the same prop to use. If I remember, you need to take the existing plane, make a copy, and then use the copy for the mods. I haven't done this for a while, so I may be off a little, but I am pretty sure that's what I did. Just called the second plane Trainer 1 or something like that.

Yes, make a copy of the existing simulator plane, then modify it. I found that by reducing the control throws a little made the PT 40 fly a bit more realistically; and that I had to reduce the down thrust quite a bit to make inverted flight even close to real.
Dennis-