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Better in real life than in fs?

PostPosted: Sat Feb 19, 2005 2:56 pm
by beefhole
I was never a fan of flying small, prop aircraft in fs for two reasons-one, my joystick sucked and it made controlling it a bitch (that's been resolved now). Two, I was always more into commercial aviation.

Anyways, with my solo coming up, I figured I'd load up a flight at my airport (Wings-in the game it's N67, in real life it's KLOM) and do a curcuit or two.

And man did I suck.

It was terrible, I was all over the place. The very first time I flew a traffic pattern in real life I nailed it, and I've probably flown like 30 since. And you mean I can't get one good pattern in on fs?

I was wondering if any other RL pilots here had noticed that they flew better in real life than on the sim.

Re: Better in real life than in fs?

PostPosted: Sat Feb 19, 2005 3:15 pm
by C
Yep - real life aircraft are easier to trim, and you can fly visual attidudes much better with greater peripheral vision, and you get proper feedback from the controls...

Charlie

Re: Better in real life than in fs?

PostPosted: Sat Feb 19, 2005 4:20 pm
by ozzy72
True Charlie, but the insurance is much cheaper on FS, and the way you drive Harvards that HAS to be a good thing ;) ;D

Re: Better in real life than in fs?

PostPosted: Sat Feb 19, 2005 5:02 pm
by C
True Charlie, but the insurance is much cheaper on FS, and the way you drive Harvards that HAS to be a good thing ;) ;D


That was only taxing though...

Re: Better in real life than in fs?

PostPosted: Sat Feb 19, 2005 6:07 pm
by chomp_rock
YES, flying is MUCH easier in real life. Especially aerobatics and helos! Here are some of the advantages:

Being able to look around
Peripheral vision
Being able to feel movements
Things are much easier to see
Real controls, no mouse clicking or keyboards to slow stuff down
better instruments (more detailed and easier to see)

There are more but I'm short of time.

Re: Better in real life than in fs?

PostPosted: Sat Feb 19, 2005 6:11 pm
by C
...but then you add fuel management, emergencies, birds, weather, birds, getting lost, air sickness, weather, examiners and more birds...

... then you wish you were back in front of the PC with Flight Sim again!

Oh, and I forgot - ATC... ;)

Charlie

Re: Better in real life than in fs?

PostPosted: Sat Feb 19, 2005 9:27 pm
by chomp_rock
...but then you add fuel management, emergencies, birds, weather, birds, getting lost, air sickness, weather, examiners and more birds...

... then you wish you were back in front of the PC with Flight Sim again!


I sure as hell don't!

Plus I'm quite fond of the ATC, they've helped me too many times for me not to be!

Re: Better in real life than in fs?

PostPosted: Sat Feb 19, 2005 9:34 pm
by Saratoga
Yup I fly a great deal better in reality than in the sim. All the reasons above are very true, strange though, throw in adjusting radios, talking to ATC, flying obviously, flaps, gear, it should be harder in reality. But for me, it seems much easier to fly in the real world.

(Then again, in reality there are passengers in the back who probably have no problem breaking my nose if I screw up)

Re: Better in real life than in fs?

PostPosted: Sat Feb 19, 2005 10:23 pm
by Rocket_Bird
i think the thing about real life in comparison of the sim is the complications.

Re: Better in real life than in fs?

PostPosted: Sat Feb 19, 2005 10:33 pm
by beefhole
Good to see I'm not the only one... ;D

And rocket, just out of interest, if you really wanted to, couldn't you move out to one of the three gazillion smaller airports around big cities? I know I personally wouldn't enjoy operating a 172 in class B.

Re: Better in real life than in fs?

PostPosted: Sat Feb 19, 2005 10:55 pm
by Rocket_Bird
I could, but i need money to move out too  ;D

It made my training kinda slow in certain areas, but its a good learning experience to operate in a busy airport.  Dodging heavies, avoiding jet blasts, talking to ATC whose always yabbing away, tuning so many different frequencies,argh hehe

Re: Better in real life than in fs?

PostPosted: Sat Feb 19, 2005 11:50 pm
by Mobius
Something I have noticed is that if I take a 172 up in FS for a quick jaunt around my home airport (C29) in Wisconisn, it's cool for a little while, but then I get kind of bored, but when I fly for real, I could stay up there for ever, if it weren't so expensive :P.  But flying for real is alot easier, especially landing, you can really feel your speed and the controls and everything and flaring a foot above the ground and slowly letting it settle is alot easier for real because you can see so much more.

Re: Better in real life than in fs?

PostPosted: Sun Feb 20, 2005 12:05 am
by Saratoga
Yes, the feeling is great of real flying.

I am with Mobius. Flying a 172 around in FS gets old fast. The municipal airport I fly out of sits right on the line (literally it bisects the airport) of the Class-B airspace around Dallas, Texas. So our takeoff procedures either way involve a quick turn to the east before climbing above 4,000 feet. In FS, it's no big deal, I can fly over Dallas VFR with my radios off and ATC is like "whateva." And I miss the controller in the tower at my airport, he is a nice guy lets us do a lot of fun stuff and throws a joke in occasionally. Big change of pace to finish an airline flight with those serious busy controllers at DFW then come home and be laid back.

Just, FS needs more depth. More real world feel, not the perfect enhanced robot feel it has right now. But it's a sim, what are we to ask of it? It's pretty good for the technology available. And, if all else fails, rent a 172. Nothing is as beautiful as sunrise in an airplane.

Re: Better in real life than in fs?

PostPosted: Sun Feb 20, 2005 12:40 am
by beefhole
I'll tell ya one thing, ATC and other pilots sure don't sound, or talk, like they do in fs. It took me a long time to learn that its ok to shorten my calls, and drop the "-er" on "niner". My CFI told me "just talk to them like they're human beings-they're not some perfect robot entity", and I remember replying "heh, in fs they are!" ;D

Re: Better in real life than in fs?

PostPosted: Sun Feb 20, 2005 12:47 am
by Saratoga
lol beautiful beef. Ya it didn't take me long to figure out that controllers who read you you're taxi clearance were perfectly satisfied if you replied with "taxi 35, 3 tango bravo". Fair enough. But no, the sim it would be, "Taxi to and hold short of runway 35 using taxiway Charlie, Delta, Tango 1, Tango 3, Delta, Foxtrot, Mooney November five five three tango bravo." ::)