Despite of the fact that I started my flight training back in 2017 and gained about 340 hours so far, I’ve never tried a flight training device of any sort. Of course I don’t consider a flight in a boeing 737 simulator in 2016 in Singapore since it was more a tourist attraction, and of course I did not log training hours.
Today I finally tried a Redbird simulator for a first time and logged my very first sim training hour.
I am in Canada now, but I have only FAA and EASA licenses, so I cannot legally fly here as a PIC of a Canadian aircraft. And believe me, it is really hard to find a N-reg here. Of course I could fly in the US, but my US visa expired at the moment, so this is not an option yet.
I surely decided to get a Canadian pilot license. Transport Canada and FAA have a bilateral agreement, and it seems fairly easy: you need a Canadian medical, Canadian radio operator license and a written exam. Additionally I have a FAA Instrument Rating, and it can be converted too, but I am not current now, so to do it properly I need an IPC – instrument proficiency check.
IPC can be done by FAA CFII, and it is not so easy to find one in Canada, but I managed to do it. We decided to have a simulator session first.
I have mixed feelings. The flights controls are basically the same, and the picture in the ‘windows’ are familiar, but it ‘flies’ totally differently. I did not feel any feedback, and the flight is much less predictable. Of course it is better than nothing, but way worse than the airplane. I miss flying. I really do.
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