Sim Flying year round

[chicagorandy]

It's been rather quiet here of late, so just thought I'd mention the aviation related joy that fills my retirement hours, regardless of the time, the weather OR my limited discretionary monies. Namely Microsoft Flight Sim 2020. I picked up all the necessary PC hardware to have a mini-cockpit at the ready whenever the mood strikes. The graphics and airplane choices are amazing, near photo-realistic scenery, live weather options etc.etc.etc.

Many years ago I came to terms with the fiscal reality that real-life flight for me was NOT too expensive, I just could never afford it. So given the choice of either totally abandoning my life long passion for aviation or finding an acceptable alternative, sim flight has proven to scratch the itch. No worries about medicals, annuals, insurance or fuel costs. And it's 'almost' like being there.

It's likely not for everyone but I'd wager there are a lot of people like me for whom it is a great match.

That's about all I have to say about that. Thanks for reading my ramblings.

[JimParker256]

There's an ironic twist to this... Sim flying can become every bit as addictive (perhaps more so) than "real" flying...

My son is not a pilot, but is an avid sim-flyer. So much so that he's invested in some very high-end cockpit simulations, a huge curved screen with a couple of additional screens for the "side views," and a gaming computer that seems to get a new "latest and greatest" graphics card each time I visit him... We sat down on day and figured out what he spent (and continues to spend) on his sim setup, and it's actually a bit more than I paid for my E-LSA airplane!

I would have said that at least he's not spending money for insurance and fuel, but he seems to spend as much on graphics cards and other bits and pieces each year as my total fuel and insurance costs.

Now he's starting to lust after some sort of "cockpit" that uses hydraulics to actually move the seat to simulate g-forces, etc. My airplane is looking cheaper and cheaper to me! Of course, he counters that by switching the "stick" for a "steering wheel," he's able to drive a Formula 1 car (or a Porsche GTS car) with his simulator, whereas I'm stuck with "just an airplane..." He's right, but I'm perfectly OK with that.