Life gets in the way of being able to flightsim. Let's face it. Work, family, bills, chores, and then flightsimming. Most of us don't get enough time to sim. If we wanted to spend all our free time simming, I guess we'd be pretty lonely on the other end of things right? When I try to tell my wife I have to fly to Germany, and it will only take a half hour to get underway, she's like "yeah, okay, whatever...". But then, I have seven more hours free to work in the garden, do chores, play with our little one, or go to the store. Much of my time "between" takeoffs and landings is spent working on FlightSim.Com. I am fortunate to have a job where I can combine my play with employment. But, the passion of simming is so great, that on weekends and evenings, I still just want to sim. Gosh, even when I fly for the charter company I am employed at part-time, and I find myself cruising at 240 kts somewhere over the east coast in a Piper Cheyenne, scooting through clouds, ice and snow - I still dream of being at home, strapped to my computer cockpit. Addicting is an understatement. Simulating flight and travel is so much fun, I cannot imagine life without it.
When I do fly it is as realistic as I can make it. That's without full ATC of course. I don't have the time nor desire to fly an IFR flight with interactive ATC. I just have never been that thrilled with how any sim does it, as I get all that exposure I need in the real cockpit. The last thing I seem to want when flying at home, is to be told I'm going to have to hold somewhere, or discover that I am going to be vectored all over creation for an IFR arrival. Besides, when I tell my wife I'm going to be landing at 8:30pm, I'd better be! :) At 8:31, she may be ready to "take over" the flight, storm the cockpit (basement door) or send forward a basket of guilt.
I do however, relish the fact that I can fly in real weather. Whether it's in FS2000, FLY! or X-Plane, the weather will be the most updated I can get, before any flight. When watching the weather on TV, or studying it on the net, I get a big kick out of knowing the fact that I did fly through that area of convection over the Midwest, or near a snowstorm over the Rockies or though that large area of clear sky near the Atlantic. I WAS there. I saw it, and I experienced it as anyone at that exact same time in real life would. As I type this away, I am enroute at FL370 to Germany, in a 777-200. I am using X-Plane and it's real weather. Since, my weather is not "live", but will be some seven hours old when I get there, I have to admit I will not check the weather there until close in. This way, I can simulate the chances a real world pilot takes when on a long journey, that the weather will not pan out as forecast. It ads some excitement and adventure to the equation. Maybe there'll be a snowstorm there, or some gusty winds, or maybe some great clear skies so I can look around. I love not knowing, and knowing I am heading far across the globe to experience a new weather regime that I wouldn't have, if I stayed in one place all the time in my flightsimming world.
Real time is also a necessity. I cannot imagine anyone out there accelerating time to squeeze a nine hour flight into a 1 hour journey. That is absolutely criminal. If I have only an hour, then I plan only an hour. That means about a 30 minute flight somewhere, always leaving off from my last arrival point. Time acceleration should have never been invented. Droning along for hour after hour over the endless Atlantic ocean may be boring for some, but compressing it to pass the time wipes out all the realism and similarity you'd get from a real life flight. I shiver at the thought.
Since most of my flights are of serious, air carrier operations, I rarely "horse around". Once a year maybe, you might catch me doing aerobatics, flying low level, dodging clouds through narrow mountain canyons, or attempting flight in an aircraft that's riddled with broken instruments, on a hard IFR night, in mountains, with icing and at least some thunderstorms. That IS fun. But, I can only do it once a year.
I have a friend that flightsims only once in a while. He might fly in Boston one hour, then Tokyo the next. "How can you do that?", I'll ask him, each and every time. He tells me, "it's only a simulator... that's what simulators are for, it's siiiimmmmuuuullllaaaaatiiiiiinngggggg". Or God forbid, he tries to fly at night one moment, then day the next. I tell him, no, that can't be done. At least for a minute or two.
I'm on my way to Germany to check out a really cool new scenery for FLY! and FS2000. Only 6 hours remaining. Yes, I am flying X-Plane. That's okay, transportation is allowed on any of the sims, as long as you realize you must initiate that sim from where you last left off.
Regular civilians just don't understand. I really hate it when I am under pressure to get upstairs to see our guests that have arrived, but I can't. I was late in arriving at my destination, and the field was low IFR. I had to make a missed approach. I had to go all the way around for another one. This time, CAT II. Autopilot coupling. I would have to be real careful. Yet, from above my little cockpit of fantasy, voices could be heard. "Where is he?", "what's he doing down there?", "what's all the noise down there?", and "you mean, he's playing a flying game again?".
That's almost enough to make me hit the pause key. Yet, I have never done that either. I have often re-engaged the autopilot, setting it up for a low speed cruise at 10,000 feet, hoping to return later, pretending hours of holding are needed. Usually, I arrive too late to finish the flight, just after the fuel has depleted. A terrible tragedy, that no one understood could have been avoided. Now, 345 souls of fantasy have been lost. Again (it happens about three times a year).
So, how do you fly? Tell us, and maybe we'll publish it! Make us all laugh, or even cry. I understand. If you were coming over for dinner, I'd just keep the chili in the oven until you land, no matter how long it takes! :)
Read a response by Lee Norrie.
Read a response by Allen Putzke.
