Mxsmanic wrote:
Nomen Nescio writes:

If you've flown one, you've flown them all. The numbers are different,
that's all.

Then why does flying one aircraft not entitle you to fly any aircraft?

Nope. Real men flew a real machine and made a real landing on
a real moon.

They learned how to do it with a simulator. There was no training in
the real thing.

There are multiple types of "shuttle simulator". Go look at

spaceflight.nasa.gov/shuttle/reference/factsheets/asseltrn.html

for all the details. The pilot training includes a real aircraft
configured to fly like the high-powered brick...er...shuttle:

" Pilots training for a specific mission receive more intensive
instruction in Orbiter approach and landing in Shuttle Training
Aircraft (STA), which are four Gulfstream II business jets modified
to perform like the Orbiter during landing. Because the Orbiter
approaches landings at such a steep angle (17-20 degrees) and
high speed (over 300 miles per hour), the STA approaches with
its engines in reverse thrust and main landing gear down to increase
drag and duplicate the unique glide characteristics of the Orbiter"

As for the moon landings, there was a full-size training device, again,
with similar characteristics as the moon lander. This is what Nomen
referred to. More details at

www1.dfrc.nasa.gov/Gallery/photo/LLRV/index.html