If the pilot is the key, either involved or not involved, then I don't accept the statement above.  The greater ability he possesses is most certainly based on his real world training and thousands of flight hours, and that is obvious to the world.  The great harm that could come to the flight sim world would be if someone else, someone with ONLY flight simulation experience, was the key figure.

 

One could make a much better argument that shoot-em-up video games lead to gun violence than can be made that flight sims lead to whatever....  I have never heard of any activity, lesson, mission or such in the flight sim world that paints a scenario of terrorism.

 

Then explain the attitude against our hobby after 9/11 when the public thought the terrorist trained with FS2000. A lot of things should be 'obvious to the world' which we all know is not. At this point in the investigation pundents are grabbing for straws to explain this situation. The media guides pubic opinion and few think for themselves (that's why we have the politicians we have). All CNN has to do is make a case and there goes the baby with the bath water. I say all this because I've seen this before that's why it's so important to look at historical facts and not theories. To us it should be obvious a gun doesn't kill people it's the person behind it but try explaining that to the enlightened elite.

I'm really tired of the news and all the "flight simulator" talk. When they say that, everyone assumes he had this in his house. 

 

 

People get that image in their head, of a sophisticated flight simulator, when in reality, its just a computer like so many others have in their homes, with a "video game" as many would actually call it, designed to simulate flight. My friends were talking about this, and said isnt that weird that he had a flight simulator in his house? When I told him that what the pilot had is exactly what I have in my house, FSX, with multiple monitors, and a joystick/flight yoke, they better understood it. And were much less impressed by the idea. But the media has no information and seem to be grasping to find the answer with the limited clues that exist. 

 

What files could they find that would give investigators much information? I mean I have some flight plans stored in the T7's FMC. But if I just took off and flew around, they wouldn't be able to get much information from the sim I doubt. I delete lots of company routes I save out of the sim every once in a while to clean things up. 

<sigh>

 

It doesn't matter WHAT the truth is when someone's out to make a name for himself.

 

I don't see flight simulation going away though. 

 

Hook

I agree, even if the pilot was involved it would make no sense to blame FS hobby, if you are a trained pilot you already know everything needed to fly your plane anywhere you want. 

 

I wouldn't let any paranoid government to restrict my freedoms even if they tried, I would keep using FS and developing stuff for it. 

 

Then explain the attitude against our hobby after 9/11 when the public thought the terrorist trained with FS2000.

 

 

9/11 was quite a lot bigger thing than this, it's not like pilot suicide would be anything new. Plus this didn't involve many westerners which makes it less interesting to western trash media. 

I agree, even if the pilot was involved it would make no sense to blame FS hobby, if you are a trained pilot you already know everything needed to fly your plane anywhere you want. 

 

I wouldn't let any paranoid government to restrict my freedoms even if they tried.

 

Study history or your doomed to repeat it. Some of us who were around in this community have already been to this party after 9/11 and speaking of freedom it's not what it used to be even in America these days... Microsoft has already shut allot down by not continuing the series, most here won't even touch P3D so there's very little resistance this time around should the tides move to point the blame at the tool and not the user behind the tool much like the gun debate.

 

 

What files could they find that would give investigators much information?

 

If there is an .rte file with the waypoints VAMPI / GIVAL / IGREX contained in it (and/or the LAT/LONGS)... as an investigator, that is going to give me real heartburn if I want to eliminate the pilot.

Anything that would demonstrate a connection to the deviation.  It would be tough to ignore.

Study history or your doomed to repeat it. We've already been to this party after 9/11 and freedom is not what it used to be even in America these days...

 

Oh well, even if FS got banned in the US it would most probably remain in Europe and most other areas. Even after 9/11 we didn't go too paranoid, for example "Just Planes" has made plenty of cockpit videos from European airlines while apparently no American airline has allowed them to do that in post 9/11 times. 

9/11 was quite a lot bigger thing than this, it's not like pilot suicide would be anything new. Plus this didn't involve many westerners which makes it less interesting to western trash media.

 

Indeed 9/11 was different but this story is huge in it's own right. You have Russia all but starting WWIII (if you think in terms of what it took to start WWII) and all news outlets for the most part are consumed with this event with good reason. The high stakes involved means someone just made off with a 777 to what end? We all can answer this after we saw what happened after 9/11 and the public will later demand the average person not have access to how operations are done in civil aviation mass transit (this is what happened before, many wanted all this classified). The problem is news agencies like CNN have opened the cookie jar far more effectively that Flight Simulator ever could have done alone.

 

 

 

Anything that would demonstrate a connection to the deviation.  It would be tough to ignore.

 

 

Yea I suppose. If they could tell he specifically practiced this route with specific deviations, that would be quite the red flag. Until proven otherwise, I don't buy it that the pilot did this. Time will tell. 

Oh well, even if FS got banned in the US it would most probably remain in Europe and most other areas. Even after 9/11 we didn't go too paranoid, for example "Just Planes" has made plenty of cockpit videos from European airlines while apparently no American airline has allowed them to do that in post 9/11 times.

 

Who makes Flight Simulator, two American companies... First Microsoft and now Lockheed Martin both in America. No one in Europe can or has the will to make a sim on this level. If the product is discontinued in America it will affect future users in the rest of the world plus there would be no advancement of the franchise technology wise.

the public will later demand the average person not have access to how operations are done in civil aviation mass transit.

I don't think most of the public cares that much to be honest. When the media hype eventually goes away due to lack of new info I'm sure most of the public will just forget the whole story. 

 

Also their opinion is irrelevant as FS experience just did not play any part here. 

 

No one in Europe can or has the will to make a sim on this level. 

 

 

I'm sure Europe has plenty of people who could do what Laminar Research has, for example Aerofly FS is developed by an European company as far as I know.

 

Also think about all the non-US third party developers out there, there are plenty of them around. 

 

 

Then explain the attitude against our hobby after 9/11 when the public thought the terrorist trained with FS2000.

 

I have been connected to this hobby since 1982, and was quite active in 2002.  I do not recall any significant attitude such as what you mentioned.  Was it mentioned?  Yes.  Did I ever sense a "public" attitude against this hobby?  No.  There was more focus on the schools where those terrorists took actual flight training.  That's what I recall.

I have been connected to this hobby since 1982, and was quite active in 2002.  I do not recall any significant attitude such as what you mentioned.  Was it mentioned?  Yes.  Did I ever sense a "public" attitude against this hobby?  No.  There was more focus on the schools where those terrorists took actual flight training.  That's what I recall.

 

So you don't remember the outcry caused Microsoft to almost cancel Flight Simulator which they later rejected leading to a late release of FS2002? If you've forgotten all this I'm sure Tom and others can dig up info to refresh your memory. I don't have all the articles on the subject right on hand.

Oh well, even if FS got banned in the US it would most probably remain in Europe and most other areas. Even after 9/11 we didn't go too paranoid, for example "Just Planes" has made plenty of cockpit videos from European airlines while apparently no American airline has allowed them to do that in post 9/11 times. 

It is highly doubtfull this would lead to a banning flightsims but if it did it would diminish the already tiny market that developers can sell their products to. A ban in the US would probably remove access to P3D to simmers in the rest of the world as well. It might even lead to simmers wanting to visit the USA being denied entrance because of their hobby. At the moment it still seems far fetched but stranger things have happened.

I'm sure Europe has plenty of people who could do what Laminar Research has, for example Aerofly FS is developed by an European company as far as I know.

 

Also think about all the non-US third party developers out there, there are plenty of them around.

 

No one is available with the resources to pull off a project like FS9/FSX, Aerosoft has already said such. X-Plane is lacking seriously when it comes to weather, AI, and ATC so hard as it is for some Laminar is not on the same level as to what Microsoft has produced. I'll add to that in saying look how log it's taken X-Plane to get to where it is and it's still missing key features. No one is going to take your manuals away but any future software development for the general user can be stopped instantly for security reasons and public safety...