Missileer
Active member
Just a side note here for anyone who has never "experienced" a good simulator. After lunch one day a few of us curious dunces went into a special room we have at work to jack around with a Huey trainer. I forget which goose decided he would try to step by step the thing off the ground but he crashed immediately. The helicopter tipped over and the blades dug into the ground. The sound and display was so realistic that we almost lost control of our bodily functions. The thing is normal size as shown by the display and wraps around the room and you're inside as far as your brain, and bladder, are concerned.
One of our group had flown this same helicopter for real in Vietnam and was sure he could handle it. He got off the ground about 10 feet and lost control. After two or three tries, he flew it over the treeline and actually took it over terrain and landed, rather hard. He said "damn, they were never that hard for real." We found out later that some overcompensation is cranked into the program so your reflexes will be quicker in a real ship.
One of our group had flown this same helicopter for real in Vietnam and was sure he could handle it. He got off the ground about 10 feet and lost control. After two or three tries, he flew it over the treeline and actually took it over terrain and landed, rather hard. He said "damn, they were never that hard for real." We found out later that some overcompensation is cranked into the program so your reflexes will be quicker in a real ship.