In regard to my desktop Sim software, my computer system was a clone. This meant that computer performance with my flight sim game was not always consistent. In addition, Microsoft Flight Simulator software is notorious for using up astronomical amounts of computer power! You can measure online game performance by analyzing what the Microsoft folks call frame rates (with 2 button clicks, you could constantly monitor your game’s frame rates as it is running). Higher frame rates indicated a higher performance computer. Lower frame rates of course indicate the opposite. My frame rates dropped noticeably when I was flying traffic patterns and setting up for short finals. The aircraft movements became rather choppy and did not flow smoothly. The changes in aircraft movement fluency always prompted me to cautiously drop/raise the nose to remain on a constant flight path towards the runway. In addition, it also caused me some confusion in terms of depth perception (i.e. my proximity to the ground and my actual distance from the runway on short final). Unfortunately, in my efforts to make my patterns uniform, I developed the habit of raising the nose of the aircraft as I was turning from base to final – which is an extremely dangerous practice in real flying. As you know – low airspeed and a fairly steep bank at a low altitude can result in an unrecoverable stall. Also, the changes in computer/ game performance made it difficult for me to maintain the runway center line on short final.

One other note. It is always useful to use the ATC option whenever you fly… and talk along with the animated voices to become acclimated with the aviation jargon! The flight sim pilot can become so comfortable with the “virtual pilot” doing all the automatic ATC responses that it becomes an additional burden when he does decide to pursue a license! Then ATC communications can pose major challenges when you suddenly realize that you have to actually fly the plane, monitor the flight instruments/systems, maintain a constant visual of the outside environment for other aircraft – and speak to ATC/Ground/Center (deciphering the machine gun chatter from ATC while remembering your aircraft call sign!)

Finally, stress piled on in the cockpit (from the outside – or instructor induced!) can cause one to revert rather quickly to old negative habits picked up on the old desktop if he is not careful!