Learning To Fly On a Simulator

[ananas1301]

Yeah landing on a runway certainly makes stuff harder.

When I try to land on a asphalt strip at my field the plane has to fly towards me. There is no way I can look at it from the back while landing so always "keep pushing the low side of the table ub" to make level Then also on the left side of the stripe are trees! So if my turn is too big I end up in them. And if I do it too short there are many metal bars coming out of the ground and a few light posts. I don´t know how but eveytime I land on it it works fine!

On grass I am terrible though!

 

[mikey]

Ditto, love my super cub! I'd also really like to see a review of the best (1m - 1.5m wingspan) foamy cubs available..... like a show down between the all the cubs! ST Model, HobbyKing, E-Flite etc

Well done again 2(Josh)!

 

[Drocket21]

flying with the sim has saved me so much great practice

 

[fred0000]

i'm learning helicopters and was trying some nose in hovering today and I was getting it but it is very tough, in this video you made a comment to "push the stick to the low wing" now nose in hover is MUCH easier that I got that in my head, hopfully that speeds up my learning!

great epesode and i'm looking forward to spending time here on the boards.

 

[Ak Flyer]

Simulators are great to start out on.. Unless you have a fairly good size monitor I think you loose too much depth perception.
I had trouble trying to learn to spot land on a simulator.

Great episode...

I use the HDMI port on my laptop to run Phoenix on my big screen tv. WAAAAY cooler than looking at my monitor

 

[ananas1301]

I use the HDMI port on my laptop to run Phoenix on my big screen tv. WAAAAY cooler than looking at my monitor

Lucky you! My laptop has a HDMI port but I don´t have a TV screen good enough for it... Although my laptop screen is at 1920*1080 which is already quite cool

 

[colorex]

Lucky you! My laptop has a HDMI port but I don´t have a TV screen good enough for it... Although my laptop screen is at 1920*1080 which is already quite cool

Is that a 23" laptop?

 

[StinkySQL]

You can't go wrong with a simulator. Helps you get used to that helpless backwards feeling that happens when I turn the plane toward me. I practice this pattern to get a right and left turn-around approach.
SS

 

[Jeffrey Saelee]

You can't go wrong with a simulator. Helps you get used to that helpless backwards feeling that happens when I turn the plane toward me. I practice this pattern to get a right and left turn-around approach.
SS
View attachment 3992

I often do that approach--even in ysflight/fs2002....even though it's definitely not realistic(in the real-aircraft flight sims or whatever they're called)

 

[Mike oxbig]

If you are having trouble with controlling the plane when it's coming at you head on you could try turning your body so that you are looking over your shoulder sideways at it. It breaks the mental lock of being nose in.

At the field I fly at we stand at a snow fence ( an orange mesh plastic barrier similar to chain link for you southerly flyers) and are parallel to the runway at all times. You don't move your body, only your head as you fly so runway approaches are always with your body 90 degrees to the plane. It also helps to have landmarks such as telephone poles or trees to line up with for the initial point.

 

[Mike oxbig]

I should also mention that even when I'm simming on Phoenix I turn my body subconsciously when landing.

 

[Liemavick]

I recently bought the Pheonix4 and have managed to fly a few circuits in different planes. None I would say are perfect take off, pattern, land but its a great tool to get familiar with my radio without looking at it and flying in general. I've messed with the wind a bit and I did notice it has the option to fly your current conditions. I try to imagine every flight is for real and try to land each flight without crashing.

Have any of you learned to fly strictly by reading the net, videos, and or using a sim? No outside help from person standing next to you? Just curious if it can be done without going through a dozen planes before having some small amount of success.

 

[pgerts]

A sim is a great help getting to learn by oneself.
It is NOT the same as in real life.
It is absolutely possible to learn to fly without any other help than a simulator.
You have trained withsome wind - OK.
You should always try to fly seeing the horizon in front of you (the start and landing strip).
Another good thing to train is to start a plane that is of trim a lot.
Many planes are not exacly straight when you assemble them and need a great bit of compensation to fly straight and level.

Next thing is to choose something easy to start flying regardless how smart you are flying with the sim.
Radian/Easystar/Bixler type might be something unless you want to go Cub/Cessna style.
A real "simulator" is a flying wing type Zagi/Bonsai to toss around in the sky.
Models flying really straight and fine out of the box are RTF/BNF Parkzone and other "quality" brands.

 

[Ak Flyer]

You can learn to fly without going through dozens of planes and not ever touching a simulator. The hobbyzone supercub is such a great trainer, great out of the box flyer, and so durable that several of my friends who have never flown before started with those and are now flying hard 3D. We all still have a cub around too and pull them out from time to time. Most are heavily modded by now but still hold a spot in our hearts.

 

[Cyberdactyl]

I found the sims are great for familiarizing yourself to different planes, helis and multi-rotors. It's also great to get comfortable with nose-in flying. But as someone said earlier in the thread, it doesn't replace standing in the field with your Tx.

I found I got a bit cocky before my first bad crash, but once you come close to destroying your model, it raises your paranoia a bit. ESPECIALLY if you build the model yourself and have a dozen or more hours in the build. That's why those foamies and Dollar Tree Store planes are such a plus for the new flyer. You can crash and you're usually out a couple bucks in foam and an hour or two in repairs.

 

[Ak Flyer]

Plus, repairs are a lot easier when you are intimately familiar with the construction.

 

[pgerts]

Plus, repairs are a lot easier when you are intimately familiar with the construction.

That is if you are flying combat ;-)
You normally dont need to repair a plane - the air is soft compared to roads/cars or water/boats.
Using the simulator right makes the flying a lot safer.

 

[bicyclemonkey]

Have any of you learned to fly strictly by reading the net, videos, and or using a sim? No outside help from person standing next to you? Just curious if it can be done without going through a dozen planes before having some small amount of success.

Yes, this is how I did it. I bought RealFlight and flew it for a month before assembling my first plane. During that month, I was on the forums and YouTube every night learning as much as I could. You'll still crash on your first flight so you need a plane like the Super Cub LP or the GWS Slow Stick that'll be easily repairable. My first flight lasted about three seconds so be prepared to crash a lot. I still have my first GWS Slow Stick that I started on over three years ago and I still fly it occasionally.

Join a club if you can, making friends and having an experienced flyer next to you will make all the difference though in getting to the "next level".

 

[Ak Flyer]

That is if you are flying combat ;-)
You normally dont need to repair a plane - the air is soft compared to roads/cars or water/boats.
Using the simulator right makes the flying a lot safer.

Lol, that's true, however I find the ground, signs, fences, trees and dumptrucks (all things I lost combat with) to be formidable foes requiring repairs.

 

[haris pilton]

Hey guys ,I'm new to the forum but just wanted to say that Phoenix RC rocks.