considering a 'frequent flier' program

[arb65912]

"if I have to put out money to fly why not do it rw and log it rather than play a game".

I do not mean to criticize here anybody's point of view but after reading above, I had to respond.

1. The money one puts out to fly on PE is a joke versus the money that would have to be spent in real life for training.
Of course , it is a simulation but the ATC interaction part is in my opinion as real as you can get and very professional.
Yes, one can call it a game, it is just a word but what I see on PE is very far away from what I would call a game.

I my humble opinion, the post above was based on a very little time ( one week ) exploring PE possibilities and I took it as such.

Cheers, AJ

[DrZGard]

"if I have to put out money to fly why not do it rw and log it rather than play a game".

I do not mean to criticize here anybody's point of view but after reading above, I had to respond.

1. The money one puts out to fly on PE is a joke versus the money that would have to be spent in real life for training.
Of course , it is a simulation but the ATC interaction part is in my opinion as real as you can get and very professional.
Yes, one can call it a game, it is just a word but what I see on PE is very far away from what I would call a game.

I my humble opinion, the post above was based on a very little time ( one week ) exploring PE possibilities and I took it as such.

Cheers, AJ

I'm with AJ here. I've been a licensed pilot since 1986 and owned my own aircraft till the early 90's. I have rented since then when funds or circumstances allowed and use the sim to keep a bit of the thought process on flying. The radio bit was the part lacking with the sim and PE is the ONLY time I have ever experienced the same kind of apprehension and anxiety that happens with real world flight. This is an invaluable tool for training and keeping oneself more current when they're not able to get out and fly for real. And the cost... who are you kidding! Yourself? Best case scenario for real world flight approaching the cost of PE is a circuit of 3 touch and goes I did recently in a rented DA20, cost $60, I logged a half hour and didn't leave the pattern and made position calls on unicom. The $20 spent a month for PE covers pretty much anytime I want to get in the sim, do an IFR flight and practice the real world radio work I have to keep sharp on in addition to flying the plane and navigating. I can't even get my CFI to do an hour's work with me talking on the ground for half that! Wishing Keith and all of PE the best of success with a well thought out missing link in the flight simulation world.