AH compared to RL airplanes

[rvflyer]

  While the control input respond in somewhat the same manner as "real life" airplanes that is where the similarity stops.
I can fly my RL RV-6  airplane all day long and never look at an instrument and know exactly what it is doing. In RL flying you
have "seat of the pants" as we call it feel for aircraft movements. You can tell if an airplane is in a climb or in a dive just
by the sound of the engine and by how heavy or light the feel of the controls are which is a good thing. In my RV-6 control
"feel" is very light at cruse speed and lower. When  I get to speeds over 200mph  they have an extremely heavy feel to
them, this is good the heavy control makes it harder make quick control inputs that tend to pull the wings off by over stressing
the airframe.

You are much more aware of outside visual reference than you are in AH that makes it much easier to constantly be aware
of your surroundings.
My reason for this is as a real life flight instructor you would think that after six years I would start having better than just
average scores and K/D ratio. the problem as I see it is that I try to fly AH airplanes and make them behave the same as
RL airplanes, and even knowing it is a cartoon airplane it is a hard thing to overcome.

Thoughts from other RL pilots?

[Golfer]

Fly them like Aces High virutal airplanes.  You're trying to incorporate a sense of keeping an airplane within its limitations against someone who doesn't know what the first limitation might be on their virtual airplane.  They've spent years mastering their craft in the virtual aerial battlefield within the Aces High world and until you match their determination in this world you won't achieve that goal of beating them regularly.

If they need to learn S Turns along a road they'll look you up.

[perdue3]

There are no similarities. Do not try to mesh the two together cuz it is impossible. My Luscombe is a bit of a handful in the wind, there is no wind in AH.

[PanosGR]

AH is not a simulator. It is a game based on simulator principles.

[ink]

well im not a RL pilot been in an airplane once, been flying in AH since 04, the one time I got into a real plane was my 40th B day I took up a super decathlonI taxied down the runway perfectly  lifted off and flew that thing like Ive been flying for years,once we got to the area we could do some areobatics I did a fast roll,  a barrel roll, nosed down for some speed and did a loop, now even before the flight the instructor tried to explain the dials but I new them already, it was truly second nature, the couple differences I noticed were the rudder peddels were much harder to press in the real thing,  and I dont puke when I fly AH because after the loop I got crazy dizzy, my vision got way out of whack,  and I puked and I mean hard puking lol, I figure if I did it a few times those feelings would stop happening lol. one of the most overewhelming moments of my life  absolutly amazing.  I know with out my history in AH I would not have been able to do what I did.

[Saurdaukar]

wind

Biggest difference, I find.

[Delirium]

there is no wind in AH.

There is plenty of wind in AH; mostly confined to channel 200 and the forums. 

[Shuffler]

There is plenty of wind in AH; mostly confined to channel 200 and the forums. 

 

[dedalos]

What exactly does real life flying has to do with dog fighting or virtual dog fighting?    Are you guys stall fighting your planes at 300 feet of the floor in real life?    I don;t see how the two can compare.  I can see how tactics from a real fighter pilot may be implemented but my guess would be that they would only go as far as stay high and stay fast.  Meaning, geared towards surviving and getting back home.

There is no comparison between the two

[groundfeeder]

the first time anyone feels g forces in an aircraft, they are overwhelmed. 3 g's is the max you EVER pull on a roller coaster, and for a very limited time.

In a real aircraft you may pull 4-5 in some maneuvers for a short period of time, and hold 3g's for extended amounts of time. After a bit your vision will narrow a bit and focus can get a bit fuzzy. with experience in aerobatics you can counter this after awhile, but it does take practice.

The control feel of the aircraft at the edge, and into a stall is mushy and often unresponsive. On the opposite end of the spectrum 3+ g bottom of the arc maneuver they get very "heavy" .  best way to explain it is, You have a small rowboat in the water attached to a rope while you are on land. in the water, no movement no pull. start the movement you meet resistance but still easy to pull. as the boat hits land you have to pull harder.

The other BIG factor in the g-force equation is that if you are 200 lbs and you pull 2 g's at 5 your a world record weight holder! goes for an arm too gotta get accustomed to holding double and more the weight of your arm.

I'll bet the people that have some of the hardest times in this game are people that know and experience flight dynamics for real, it may take them more time to adjust to the virtual world. "feel" of the controls CANNOT be replaced.

[68Wooley]

I AH, I'm never quite as attentive to how healthy the engine is sounding or what the dials are saying as I approach rotate speed as I am in RL. On the other hand, every time I'm told to 'line up and wait', I'm constantly looking for wayward Cessna's or Southwest 737's on final in much the same way I'm looking out for vulching Dora's so there are some similarities...

On the whole though, I think Ink is pretty close in that if you have played AH, you will be pretty comfortable in a piston single trainer. You wont be at Practical Test Standards but you'll be well ahead of someone starting from scratch.

As for wind, although its not used in the MA's, AH wind can be challenging. Trying setting a 20 knot crosswind in offline practice and land a Spitfire in a way that would work in real life. Its not easy.

[rvflyer]

I AH, I'm never quite as attentive to how healthy the engine is sounding or what the dials are saying as I approach rotate speed as I am in RL. On the other hand, every time I'm told to 'line up and wait', I'm constantly looking for wayward Cessna's or Southwest 737's on final in much the same way I'm looking out for vulching Dora's so there are some similarities...

On the whole though, I think Ink is pretty close in that if you have played AH, you will be pretty comfortable in a piston single trainer. You wont be at Practical Test Standards but you'll be well ahead of someone starting from scratch.

As for wind, although its not used in the MA's, AH wind can be challenging. Trying setting a 20 knot crosswind in offline practice and land a Spitfire in a way that would work in real life. Its not easy.

  True wind is a big factor for takeoff and landing, but in flight airplane has no idea which way wind is blowing or how fast.

[Saurdaukar]

On the whole though, I think Ink is pretty close in that if you have played AH, you will be pretty comfortable in a piston single trainer.

I agree with this.

Never understood why some RL drivers seemed so intent on suggesting that such a massive divide exists between the two.

Absolutely, there are thousands of little things that AH simply cannot simulate, and I do not mean to suggest that one would be able to land a 747 if the pilot suffered a stroke... but the basic mechanics of flight, insomuch as they translate from your brain, through your body and to the control inputs, is the same.

[groundfeeder]

I agree with this.

Never understood why some RL drivers seemed so intent on suggesting that such a massive divide exists between the two.

Absolutely, there are thousands of little things that AH simply cannot simulate, and I do not mean to suggest that one would be able to land a 747 if the pilot suffered a stroke... but the basic mechanics of flight, insomuch as they translate from your brain, through your body and to the control inputs, is the same.

Ahhhhhh sorry , but no.  Those thousands of things your brain has to translate have to be learned in the real world. An experienced pilot in a trainer doesn't jump into a twin without training, nor does he transfer from a twin to turbine. All have their good and bad characteristics. AH WILL NOT prepare you for flying a trainer, please don't think it will, you are very mistaken. what it does help with is the terminology in relation to some aircraft instruments and such things. Most of the new trainers out there have glass cockpits, they have dispensed with the old steam gauges.

[Tinribs]

I never flew RL but Ive been flying r/c for about 7 years when I got this game it took me about 6 weeks to not turn the wrong way when someone had sneaked onto my 6,Im not good at this game, Im not great at r/c either but I love em both.
youve either got it or you havent,I havent and I dont care.