Has anyone ever considered that by digitally immortalizing an airliner, PMDG et al are doing a huge service to future generations, because they will actually be able to continue to fly them, instead of just settling for a static display?

..or any accurately modeled airplane, for that matter?

Just now, Ilari Kousa said:

Has anyone ever considered that by digitally immortalizing an airliner, PMDG et al are doing a huge service to future generations, because they will actually be able to continue to fly them, instead of just settling for a static display?

For scientific purposes, surely.

For general purposes, I suspect there would (probably) be only a very limited interest.

For instance, how many of us actually take the opportunity to putter around in the Wright flyer, even though there are various models, including free ones, available?

Yeah, I was mostly considering "interested parties" in this case.

For me personally, it is very important yes.  If I had anything to do with pilot training (and I don't although my day job has a lot to do with training) I would make every pilot in training learn to fly a classic airliner to make them think about what they are actually doing, instead of putting them on machines that do most of the thinking for them.

Having discussed this with pilot friends who started on airliners with "steam gauges" and ended their careers on "glass cockpits" they agree that they often relied on their previous "classic" airliner experience to remain ahead of the modern aircraft and some admitted it got them out of the odd sticky situation. 

As a Concorde geek, it is the only way to keep the memory, not of the pilots and engineers who flew her, but of the thousands of people who hand the intelligence to think, design, build and maintain her, alive for future generations.  Maybe one day someone will think "we USED to fly 100 people across the Atlantic in 3 hours 20 minutes twice a day in both directions, and now......".

And before someone mentions "Boom", yes I take my hat off to them.  But many of the hardest issues were solved by Concorde and their aircraft still won't carry the same payload.

So yes, it has historical merit in my opinion. 

I think it's safe to say that future generations will never have the chance to use PMDG products. Compuer technology changing like it does will ensure that "real old" stuff simply won't work.

I think there is more likelihood of the hobby in general suffering from the financial constraints brought on by the current world-wide situation.  

2 hours ago, trumpetfrazz1 said:

 

Having discussed this with pilot friends who started on airliners with "steam gauges" and ended their careers on "glass cockpits" they agree that they often relied on their previous "classic" airliner experience to remain ahead of the modern aircraft and some admitted it got them out of the odd sticky situation. 

 

Interesting reading and angle to find an excuse.

I'm one of the-guys who grew up with "steam gauges" (64 years old) and did the transition to the "glass cockpits".

This shows that they actually were not proficient enough and understood the glass technology, that's the reason they think that they got out of a "sticky situation" by reverting back to steam gauges mentality. 

They got the wrong training, probably from old instructors with steam gauges mentality (we have them even at the "airlines") which often you hear them "you remember how we did it when we flew steam gauges and had no problems? Instead of showing them that they not only have the same information available they had on the steam gauges that actually now they have more useful info available for the safety of the flight.

All this glass technology displayed on those screens is almost the same  we had/have on the old ones but on a different layout. If you not proficient on the new layout I can put  the same info on a CRT/LCD screen you will still have issues. 

Perfect example was when years ago we had steam gauges all over the place in the cockpits, it was decided to have the primary instruments to be placed in standard "T" format, oh boy what a pisser was that within the pilots. They got proficient and they liked it.

Difficult to give up old habits and when you getting older harder it is to keep up with the technology.

I have (active pilot) friends that they don't want to get a new phone because is too complicated, you get the idea.

 

11 hours ago, killthespam said:

Interesting reading and angle to find an excuse.

I'm one of the-guys who grew up with "steam gauges" (64 years old) and did the transition to the "glass cockpits".

This shows that they actually were not proficient enough and understood the glass technology, that's the reason they think that they got out of a "sticky situation" by reverting back to steam gauges mentality. 

They got the wrong training, probably from old instructors with steam gauges mentality (we have them even at the "airlines") which often you hear them "you remember how we did it when we flew steam gauges and had no problems? Instead of showing them that they not only have the same information available they had on the steam gauges that actually now they have more useful info available for the safety of the flight.

All this glass technology displayed on those screens is almost the same  we had/have on the old ones but on a different layout. If you not proficient on the new layout I can put  the same info on a CRT/LCD screen you will still have issues. 

Perfect example was when years ago we had steam gauges all over the place in the cockpits, it was decided to have the primary instruments to be placed in standard "T" format, oh boy what a pisser was that within the pilots. They got proficient and they liked it.

Difficult to give up old habits and when you getting older harder it is to keep up with the technology.

I have (active pilot) friends that they don't want to get a new phone because is too complicated, you get the idea.

 

Thanks for your own perspective.  The people I know clearly have a different view. 

There has also been at least one incident recently where the crew lost their nav data and clearly had no mental picture of where they were or indeed thought to revert to VOR nav (yes I know the number of them is reducing) or indeed dead reckoning.  

I can see both sides. 

14 hours ago, W2DR said:

I think it's safe to say that future generations will never have the chance to use PMDG products. Compuer technology changing like it does will ensure that "real old" stuff simply won't work.

Emulators exist even today, so that's not really a problem.

There are still quite a few things an emulator can't do. Time will tell.................

Edited October 13, 20205 yr by W2DR