What’s New in Flight Simulators, with Evan Reiter

By John Zimmerman
Oct 8, 2024
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Pilot's Discretion Podcast, episode 88

Home flight simulators can be valuable training tools, and they don’t necessarily teach bad flying habits. Evan Reiter, co-founder of the Flight Simulation Association, shares the data to back up those statements in this sim-centric episode. He also explains why virtual ATC services are so important for simulator pilots, and he offers a preview of the highly anticipated Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024. In the Ready to Copy segment, Evan (who is also an airline pilot) talks about his favorite flight sim hardware, how to sound better on the radio, and the surprising way flying helps him on the ski slopes.

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Quotes:

Do you need a fancy simulator? “Start simple, even with some of the equipment that you might already have.”
Using sims the right way: “You have to use the simulator for the purpose that it is designed and not use it to try to become a great hands and feet pilot.”
Why virtual ATC is so helpful: “Almost forcing yourself into taking the simulator environment slightly more seriously when someone is watching.”
Can simulators save time in training? “The average in the survey of how long it took people to get their Private was 55 hours, which is about 20 hours less than the national average.”
Using sims to attract young people to aviation: “I think both from the pilot and the controller side, we should be thinking about this as almost like an early recruiting tool.”
What’s new in Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024: “Now we’ve got what seems to be career- and mission-oriented things… the community is really excited about that.”
The state of the market: “It’s getting easier than ever to get into and the software that powers all of this is getting more powerful, so I think in summary it’s a great time to become a flight simmer.”
What sims can’t teach: “Dealing with things like icing, adverse weather, deviating around thunderstorms—those are the kind of things that just happen in the real world.”
The challenges of airline flying: “When you’ve done it for a while, the airplane flying part is generally easy… and it’s all the other stuff you’re trying to finesse.”
The innovation we need: “I want the ability to turn my desk into some sort of virtual cockpit, without having to wear a VR headset.”
Advice for better radio communications: “It’s a push to talk button, not a push to think button.