Snowbird writes:

Typically they have not only simulated the destruction of a number of
aircraft, but are completely unaware of the aspects of aviation that occur
before takeoff and after landing. It takes time and effort to get them
understand neither is an option in real aviation.

Some people use simulators precisely because they are aware of all the useless
overhead in real aviation and prefer to avoid it. I know that's the key
reason for me.

I rather doubt that any intelligent person would question the utility of
avoiding a crash in real aviation.

This seems to be a favorite theme of yours.

It's a favorite theme of the FAA, too, one of a group of characteristics that
one finds frequently among pilots who have accidents.

The FAA isn't the only organization to notice this, however.

In my experience, such people
tend to favor more extreme activities such as parachuting or mountain
climbing, over flying They tend to be discouraged by what they call
"restrictive rules" of aviation.

But some of them do become pilots, behaving long enough to get the license,
and then they ignore the rules and take serious risks. Additionally, this
character defect exists in degrees, and so it might be mild enough not to
interfere with getting a license, but severe enough to encourage a pilot to
take risks that will eventually get him killed.

For most pilots, in my experience, the
fascination of flying is something quite remote from the thrill-seeking
behavior you describe.

It's a question of personality. Note that people who are fascinated by
physical sensations are only one step away from the thrillseekers.

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