It seems obvious to me, that one really needs to spend some time in an
airplane with another pilot to get the basics down. Your manager has had the
benefit of watching others as well as having you standing over his shoulder
coaching him, - right? That's a far cry from "trial and error" learning on
your own - that's a tough row to hoe. (Note that no one ever calls it "trial
and succeed".) Jay, would you agree that stepping into an airplane would
still be a chalenge for your manager? And, (again with someone instructing
or coaching) would it give his skills a big boost?

Oh, absolutely. You guys seem to think that I'm advocating doing away
with the flight school here in Iowa City -- and that's far from what I
believe. Nothing will replace an instructor and a real airplane.

But, on the other hand, to dismiss the Kiwi as a mere "game" is to
unfairly minimize what we've accomplished here. As an example, last
night (at Movie Night) a young pilot (they DO exist!) showed up, not to
see the movie ("Flying Tigers", BTW) but to fly the Kiwi.

He flew for 20 minutes or so, made some nice approaches into Mackinac
and Madeline Islands, and had a great time. He then pronounced the
Kiwi as superior to the mega-thousand dollar, PC-based flight sim at
the flight school.

Since the time on that machine CAN be logged, what does that say about
the Kiwi?

I think this kind of simulator can _augment_ training in an aircraft, but
it doesn't replace it.

No one (with any brains) ever suggested otherwise.
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination