On Jul 5, 12:49*pm, Mike Ash wrote:
In article
,

*a wrote:
The reality is, use would have to be pretty high, for 2000 hour rental
years -- that's 40 hours a week, the device alone would have to earn
$10 an hour for a 3 year payback, and that contributes nothing for
space and instruction time. A more realistic use rate might be 500
hours a year, device charges $40 an hour for a 3 year payback (more or
less a 30% ROI, not a bad target for high risk ventures). I think I'll
keep my checkbook unopened.

For things where the simulator is just as good or better than a real
plane (practicing instrument procedures?) then $40/hour is a great rate.
But still somewhat hefty....

On the other hand, there are things I'd like to do in my airplane and
would happily pay a few hundred dollars to try them in a realistic
simulator.

Oh yes. I'd easily pay WAY more than what I pay for actual flight time
to practice takeoff aborts at difficult altitudes in a simulator good
enough for the experience to translate into reality.

--
Mike Ash
Radio Free Earth
Broadcasting from our climate-controlled studios deep inside the Moon

Mike, that $40 would not pay for the space rent, instructors, clerks,
other overheads. I agree that many of us would pay a few hundred
dollars for realistic sim of spin recovery, other outside the envelope
stuff. With a safety pilot aboard I've flown to touchdown under the
hood on an ILS, but man, if you don't feel the ground effect in time
you're going to bounce! a half dozen approaches from the OM inbound to
touchdown in zero zero in a full motion sim would be very comforting,
but I'd have to feel the ground effect cushion for it to be useful for
me. I'd also like to feel what it's like to have the airplane collect
enough ice to be dangerous, that would have to be a 'feel' thing
too.

I doubt that there is a full motion sim would do a good job at showing
someone a stall/spin entry -- can not do that in real life in a
Mooney, but man, in a suitable airplane with an instructor aboard,
what happens when the inside wing stalls in a too slow too steep turn
gets your attention! We got inverted in a heart beat. That is an
'unusual attitude' I never want to face in real life.