Can we fly the real plane??

[Craig.]

A couple of points. Flight sim has left out some very important things even on a basic trainer that are a key to keeping a plane in the air. One of those things and its something old Fozzer brings up occasionally, is carb heat. How many sim pilots actually know about it let alone know when to use it? i have had a few lessons towards my PPL and even then it was something i hadnt gotten to grips with. As to the big boys, i honestly doubt it. All the reading in the world can only prepare you so much. Starting up a new jet like a 777 or the newer 737's/A320's might be possible but only because they are made to be as simple as possible to reduce work load. But sit someone down in the cockpit of an old 737 or a DC10 727 and so on and i doubt there are too many people who could figure out where to start

[Craig.]

Thats not too complicated that cockpit, alot of those lights at the top are just circuit breakers if i remember correctly. I still wouldnt like to try starting it though, blowing up a $200 million plane isnt my idea of a fun day:)
put those two together and then you'd have me in tears figuring out where to sit LOL.
Computers who needs computers
http://www.airliners.net/open.file/538860/L/
http://www.airliners.net/open.file/566146/L/

[JBaymore]

Interesting eh? Anyone heard of the Engaard fellow? The thought is intriguing, to say the least.

I may be wrong here.... but I think Nick is one of the more well known home cockpit builders.

[Fox_Molder]

I am sure many of you will not agree. but I am thinking that any experimented simmer could crash land any type of plane and have a 50% chance of getting out a live.

My reasonning.

one if you are in the pit that mean you where calm enaugh to walk there.

2 you know that below such speed this thing become a fallen rock.

3 you know that someone on the radio can help you to find basic instrument and program approch on autopilot.

4 you know that they wont let you land this with full fuel.

5 they will probably repeat to you your 5 step 101 time before you disengage approch.

6 you could not care less about the landing gear all you want is walk out a live. break it who care. what have you got to loose

7 considere all this plus the adrenaline. plus all the fire retarden you will be landing in. hey I give you Freak simmers (not the beginner) 50% chance to walk from it with only bruse.

It take someone with some aptitude to flight sim. this kind of aptitude is probably helping you on you daily task. such as driving. or fixing the lawnmower. you probably read most readme files and enjoy a technical manual. You probably have a developed sence of observation. and most likely a good sence of 3d perspective. if so you are probably good with fire arm and a like. and you are often the first one helping in crises(and most likely wondering WTF give me a hand when you look around).

Do you recognise yourself.....if so you stand a good chance of surviving something unexpected.

Trust youself a little. mistake wont kill you most of the time.


Fox

[Chris_F]

I am sure many of you will not agree. but I am thinking that any experimented simmer could crash land any type of plane and have a 50% chance of getting out a live.

Another thing to consider:

There's no way anyone's going to let you land that plane at a major airport.  Nobody wants a couple thousand tonns of aluminum and jet fuel piloted by an amature anywhere near a population center.  Hopefully there's an out of the way military base somewhere within range or else they'll probably ask you to put the plane down in a field somewhere quiet and out of the way.  Try to land at a major airport (and approach a city in the process) and you're likely to get shot down.

I'd put an experienced pilot's chances of putting a heavy down in a field at about 50/50.  I'd put mine much, much lower.

[C]

[quote] While i probably couldn't start up / take off. I could probably land without killing myself, but I would probably break something! lol....

[zcottovision]

If the situation arose on an Easyjet flight that the captain became incapable of flying, I'd be more than happy to give it a shot. Admittedly it's unlikely, but I've done enough hours in the PMDG 737 to figure out -very roughly- what to do. It wouldn't be great, but I think most of us could get by ok.

[GWSimulations]

A TV program once did that experiment, the simmer was handed the controls of a Piper Arrow in the air, and had to land it. As I recall, the approach was good, but the landing was quite heavy...

[Fox_Molder]

Try to land at a major airport (and approach a city in the process) and you're likely to get shot down.

Well not in Canada, people are most likely to wav you good bye . and F18 will take forever to get to you from bagotville  :-/ . dont worry about air patrol (police) to expensive and we would not know what to do with it. here people pull over when you stop them and when they dont they endup killing themself(highway are slipery in winter hehehe)  ;) . dont forget Pot will no be criminal in Canada very soon...have you ever seen a stoned guy on a good trip posing any problem beside laughing all the time.  ???

I hope i did not offended anyone. but that is about the situation at the moment. hehehe hey!  ;D

[Chris_F]

[quote]

Well not in Canada, people are most likely to wav you good bye . and F18 will take forever to get to you from bagotville

[birdie]

Everyone would die if it was me, and I have a Commercial licence, multi-rating, instrument rating, and have flown turbines, but nothing bigger than a Twin Otter.  Just going from the Navajo to the Twin Otter was a huge jump!  Cheers!

[Scottler]

Since getting into simming back in 98, I've often said that if my pilots were incapacitated, and my limited experience were the only experience aboard, I am relatively confident I could put a 737 down somewhere....granted, it would be in 2 or 3 large chunks, and it probably wouldn't be at an airport, but I think the majority of folks would survive...more than if the plane plummeted into a field, let's put it that way.

[Brute]

I would believe you could fly a heavy if you were trained on a Cessna, as long as you understand the basic principles of flight. As for "cold" starts the aircraft manual, or checklist should come in handy, not to metion the manufacturers phone number , if all else fails, hitting random switches can't hurt :-/

[birdie]

 

I would believe you could fly a heavy if you were trained on a Cessna

I disagree since I know it is a big change just to go from a Navajo(8 passengers) to a Twin Otter(19 passengers).  Yes the principles of flight are the same but how it handles and the wheel to eye height are totally different.  That is why when you are being trained on a heavy it is a 6 month or longer coarse before you are even aloud to fly with passengers and even then you start as the co-pilot.

[MattNW]

The only experience I have is in small planes (Cessnas mostly) but in my opinion: Airliner=No Way  Single engine prop=Possibly. I only ask two things of you. Don't do the experiment in any airplane I own and don't expect me to come along as a passenger.  :o

More seriously, MSFS is a good training tool for a small plane. The operation of the Cessnas is very close to real and even closer if you follow realistic procedures all the way through the flight.

Since I started in real Cessnas I found little trouble at all in the sim with those. The panel, instruments and flight characteristics were very close to real life. Procedures are a different matter. I've done things in the sim that would get my certificate yanked in a heartbeat in the real world (hey, it was fun) but overall the sim provides a decent experience for the small stuff.

Airliners are a completely different matter. Even an experienced Cessna pilot would be overwhelmed in the left seat of even a simple airliner (even someone with experience in turboprops as a commercial pilot would find it a huge step). Get into the heavies and you are downright dangerous.

I remember the discussion right after 9/11. The terrorists used the sim for planning the flight but all of them were taking flight school to (supposedly) become commercial pilots.

Kind of wonder at the one who told his instructor that all he needed to learn was how to take off and fly but not to worry about teaching him to land.  ???

Realistically a sim pilot would stand little chance without a lot of help in flying a jetliner. It's on the outside possibility that they could land without killing someone but that's not where my money would be bet.