Thought I'd share a little update on my flying lessons

[dkohl 0]

Its been a long time since I've posted here on the forum. I've been extraodinarily busy with my job these days, and all the time I used to spend on the sim I now spend driving to/from DXR and flying in a Piper PA-28-161, very similar to the one modeled by ROTW. I attached a photo below.Flying (for real) has been a dream come true. I took two intro flights as I previously reported (first in late August and another Labor Day weekend). I took to the skies with a regular Saturday lesson just about six weeks ago. I've accumulated a little over seven hours and am loving it.http://forums.avsim.net/user_files/50541.jpghttp://forums.avsim.net/user_files/50545.jpgI wanted to share a few observations. First, stalling in real life is waaayyy more cool than doing it in Fly!2. While the programming on a lot of fronts is really good, I've not been able to re-create a good stall in the Piper (or for that matter, any of the GA aircraft) with Fly!2 on the PC. Other maneuvers, like steep turns, appear to be pretty well modeled in the Sim. As bank angles increase, much of the same response on controls appears to be needed. I did notice something interesting though in Fly!2. I loaded some METAR from a recent flight where there was particularly low pressure. I checked the pressure after loading METAR and adjusted the altimeter accordingly. But as I did so, I just sunk right into the ground according to the altimeter. What I discovered is that when not at 29.92 on the altimeter, the altitude reading is just simply wrong, regardless of what's programmed into the WEATHER menu. I never noticed that before. Thought I'd bring it up in case maybe I'm doing something wrong, or have some setting incorrect.On other fronts, I do still enjoy the sim, especially for the big birds. I've attached some screenies of a recent PanAm 707 flight. See separate post if you're interested.Oh... and BART - thank you so much for all your initial tips. I ended up buying a FlightCom 5DX PNR headset for myself. I plan to get my kids the AVCOMM 250 you recommended. I'm not sure if I'm going to splurge for a David Clark for myself and give my wife my FlightCom, or weather I'll get something a little less expensive. But either way, your advice about gel seals was great.To all my friends in Fly!2 land, I'll be back soon enough. Hope you don't mind my sharing the offline experience I've finally added to my life. Best to everyone. And for those celebrating, Happy Thanksgiving.-DK----David KohlFly! II v2.5.240Dell 8200 P4/1.8G, 1024MB RAM, Nvidia GF4 Ti4600 v44.03, WinXP Home Edition SP1.CH Pro Pedals and Yoke USB.

[Guest Bart]

No problem, glad to see your having fun and sounds like your tummy is adjusting :)"I'm not sure if I'm going to splurge for a David Clark for myself and give my wife my FlightCom"he he he...you haven't been married real long have ya?!?! :-lolc ya :-waveBart flyhelp@zoomtown.comhttp://bartsflyplace.tripod.com/bart_logo3.jpg

[Guest spenik]

Hello David. Geting flying lessons huh? Cool!Say I have a question for you. While flying in a plane like a Piper PA-28, how do you remember when to swich fule tanks? I allways forget this is Fly!II and it drives me bonkers.Thanks. Happy landings! :-)Robert

[dkohl 0]

Every 30 mins is the rule of thumb I use. Since I'm doing relatively short flights at this point, I generally taxi on one tank and switch just b/f takeoff (this "proves" I have two working tanks). Then I fly for about 30 mins and switch. I've not had to switch again b/c I'm typically landing before one hour.-DK----David KohlFly! II v2.5.240Dell 8200 P4/1.8G, 1024MB RAM, Nvidia GF4 Ti4600 v44.03, WinXP Home Edition SP1.CH Pro Pedals and Yoke USB.

[Guest Fly II Pilot]

David,I find myself doing exactly the opposite of what you're doing, I'm spending whatever free time I have in the sim and not really flying, just developing stuff and doing test flights. I found another side to the hobby and I'm loving it...Thanks for sharing your experience, I think THAT serves as an inspiration to others who may be considering to start flying.I remember exactly when I had seven hours and how excited I was. After having a baby, the different experiences that you go through as a flight student are second to none... (first solo flight, cross-country, cross wind landings, stalls, spins, the check ride, etc.)Stay focused and don't stop until the PPL, or should I say the ATP??? :-)Good landings...Alejandro AmigorenaCheshire, CTFly! II Beta Team MemberAthlon XP 1800ABIT KR7A-RAID768Mb RAMMSI GeForce4 Ti4600 8xAGP 128MBSB Audigy GamerCH Flight Yoke USBCH Pro Pedals USBhttp://www.avsim.com/hangar/fly/dfdg/banneraa.jpg

[dkohl 0]

No way on the ATP, but after the PPL, I will probably go for an IFR certificate. After that, CFI? CFII? One step at a time.-DK----David KohlFly! II v2.5.240Dell 8200 P4/1.8G, 1024MB RAM, Nvidia GF4 Ti4600 v44.03, WinXP Home Edition SP1.CH Pro Pedals and Yoke USB.