I just wanted to say thank you to MS and the team for FS2020.

I am well old now, and not in very good health due to various things that happened in my history.  I am mid 60's, but look and feel as if I am early 80's.  Back in my 20's I got my PPL on P28's being trained at Fairoaks airport in the UK.  I enjoyed my flying very much but after my problems in the 80's I had to surrender my licence.

I have always been into computers and my first flight sim ( that was useable) was on the Amiga and I progressed through all subsequent ones until I was flying FSX.   I've never been able to afford the latest and greatest computer so my time hs always been chasing the best I could get from what I had.    I foound a program many years ago called "It's your plane", which for me was wonderful..  it really helped me by taking over and helping to compensate for my bad machine when I was flying.

However, the cost of making FSX even appear reasonable to me was scary..  I was big into ORBX and many other companies and I guess when I added up all the controls and the bits I had, I was into way to much money.

3 years ago, I took early retirement and moved back from Canada to the UK and I took a really hard look at things and got rid of all my yoke and saitek equipment and stopped flying FSX.

I hadn't even heard of FS2020 until May this year and I mentioned it to my wife saying well.. thats the next generation, I wonder how they will do.

Anyhoo..  August 18th this year, I woke up and found on my computer desk 2 packages...  one a thrustmaster flight stick x and the second a copy of FS2020 from my wife.

I was like a kid at a funfair but also scared because I don't have a great computer..  however,  I ripped open the boxes and started installing..  and I was one of the lucky ones...  It installed first time.  I looked for some videos and found Squirrels, and carefully watched his set up and controller videos and set up the Thrustmaster.   Then with trepidation, I fired up the program wondering how long it would take to tune this to make it work.

Imagine my surprise when the program offered me high settings and I set up my first flight in the 152 and sat at the end of the runway at fairoaks waiting to go.    It all came back to me, the enjoyment, the fun, the anticiption and to my delight it all worked as needed...   no changes to setup, no hunting configs and nothing.. just plug it in and go.

Since then I have been flying every day, learning how to use the various items, such as the Garmin 1000 on the 172  (never had an autopilot when i was flying)  again from Squirrels videos and I have spent the last 2 weeks still like a kid in a funfair.

Since i haven't really been out of my house for nearly 5 months because of COVID and Health, this really has saved my sanity,  so let me end with this...

I know I am an old codger, and i know there are things to fix, and I understand that I am not a real pilot anymore, but FS2020 has given me back, some measure of freedom and delight in these awful times,  so thank you MS and team and my wife for luring me back into simming.

I'm off now to rcreate another flight from my old logbook from 40 years ago..   see you in the air.

Oh  P.S  I also found Avsim and thank you as well for making a place we can all chat and appreciate what we have here 🙂

Graham

Edited August 29, 20205 yr by Moria15

Welcome and enjoy the ride in the virtual skies 😎

Nicely said Graham. Glad your enjoying yourself mate.

Really glad that it is working out for you. It can be quite the tonic. And, despite people moaning because they can’t get 60fps at 4k, I think the program manages to shine fairly brightly on even the most modest of systems. Happy days 🙂

your words are enriching. Thanks and happy that you can enjoy yourself with MSFS! 

I wish you many wonderful flights, Graham!

Lovely story, glad your having so much fun like us all. It really is nice to just get up and fly, I've explored more of the UK over the past two weeks than i have in a over a decade and a half of flying other sims! Lovely gesture from your wife, got to treat her now Graham!

Graham, what a fantastic post! 
And what a wife 🙂

I was never a real pilot, so my opinion isn’t founded in your experience. But I used to fly sims a couple of decades ago, and a year ago (or thereabouts), I tried to get back into it. However, the learning curve was just too steep, and I gave up when after reading a few magazines and web sites, I just couldn’t figure out how to get started.

I'm really interested in now learning the intricacies if flight, but never had any interest in wrestling with the intricacies of computer stuff. I do that all day at work, and when I come home, I don’t want to start again.

MSFS has allowed me the same experience as you: install and fly.

And yes, for those with lots of flight sim experience, I’m sure there is lots to be done. But for me, it just looks like the most incredible thing I ever saw.

What a wonderful post, and so refreshing to read compared to those by entitled kids complaining their local pond doesn’t have any simulated ducks on it.

flight simulation can indeed be a truly magical experience.

Fantastic post, Graham!
Kind regards,

Absolutely MEGA Graham.. ..happy flying Sir😁👍😁

Hey Graham

Great post, once a pilot always a pilot, enjoy the Sim it's great warts and all.

Edited August 29, 20205 yr by Ray Proudfoot
Removed linked post.

1 hour ago, Moria15 said:

Anyhoo..  August 18th this year, I woke up and found on my computer desk 2 packages...  one a thrustmaster flight stick x and the second a copy of FS2020 from my wife.

Wow, I can imagine how happy you felt. Wonderful story. Happy flying! 

Great post, glad you're enjoying the (virtual) ride!

great, positive, common sense post.

enjoy the skies again.