Is the real world wrecking your 'simming?

[spotlope]

Have you ever had a real-world experience that colored your view of certain FS planes or liveries? I just got back from a fantastic European holiday that included a couple of flights on RyanAir. Having had that experience, I can tell you there's no way I'll ever fly their livery in FSX. Not even with the incredible PMDG NGX. Ugh.

Another aside; I've always considered myself a bit of a Boeing man. We flew Delta's 767 across the pond from Atlanta to Dublin, and one of their A330's back to Atlanta from Rome. The A330 won, hands-down, for comfort and space. No contest. It's changed how I look at sim Airbuses as well.

[SkippyBing]

I can tell you there's no way I'll ever fly their livery in FSX

To be fair most solvent people this side of the pond avoid flying it in real life...

[Mr.Mugel]

It often happens to me, when I visited an airshow, saw a plane perform, and than can´t recreate the manouvers in FS, the limited capability of aerobatics in FS (Knife edge spinning and tumbling/lomczevak for example), or even only a precisely flown 8 timed roll in a warbird, gives me some realisation feelings. Often I don´t fly some weeks after that. Maybe it is partially my flying skills, too, but I think that´s an end where FSX is just not perfect.

Another thing, also bound with airshows is warbird startups. When I see such a mighty beast roaring up in real life with sputters, flames, three tries without it catching up, it is just amazing. When one hits the start key in most aircraft, it is a sound played, some effects, but allways the same. The only lasting cure I found for this one is Accusim, which sums up pretty much what I fly these days.

[fallenphoenix1986]

Re. Ryan Air, they have a maintenence depot not far from me, a few guys I've worked/studied with are now working there - wont be volunteering to fly with them anytime soon having seen what those guys are (in)capable of.

As for their service I think it was Frankie Boyle that put it something like this: "Ryan air are going to be introducing a direct service from London to New York, flights will actually terminate just outside NYC... in Dublin..."

Craig

[heywooood]

yeah - I recently flew on a CRJ from Chicago to Buffalo - My seat was over the port wing root on top of the main landing gear well - the wing joint kept creaking and cracking and popping whenever that wing flexed - on take off, landing and couple of times at cruise altitude in mild buffet...and when the gear activated that sounded like it had never been greased...that main just grinded its way in and out of the wheel well...

now when I scroll through the aircraft selection in FSX...I give that CRJ a dirty look and move right along

[TARPSBird]

My real-world experiences with certain airplanes have almost always put them in a favorable light for my flight sim flying. For example, the RAF Flt. Lt. navigator who gave me a walk-around tour of his Vulcan at an air show, or the P2V Neptunes I got to fly in when I was a young lad in the reserves at NAS Glenview. The only negative experience I've had was my C-5 Galaxy flight from NAS Norfolk to Bahrain. Poorly air-conditioned upper-level troop compartment with not enough windows, and the cargo bay smelled like vomit and wet canvas. And no, I don't have a C-5 in my FS9 or FSX.

[glennc]

If I've been flying for real, the desire to sim fly may get subdued for about 24 hours, but not always. Seeing a static display or a flying airplane I'm not in does not have that affect.

Glenn

[gman5250]

Last commercial flight I had was a 737, back seat against the bulkhead with an incredibly rude 300 lb. woman in the row seat next to me. I don't fit the window seat in the 737 very well anyway, but this flight was somethin' special.

The probability of me going through a TSA grope down without completely going gonzo ballistic on the "Man in Blue" is slim and none, so I can safely say I'll never enter another commercial airport. Heh...Heh...

If I had the chance to sit in the right seat private or charter I'd jump at the chance.
Life is like a box of chocolates...you never know what your gonna get.

[CG_1976]

Last commercial flight I took was the Canadian North from CYFB to Ottawa. Excellent service and 100'sX better then Scare Canada and Westfart. Atm Windows 8 is wrecking my sim enjoyment err.

[Dimus]

It was the opposite for me. My last real world flight, early last Sunday morning, in the left seat of club's 172 over the Saronikos bay did well to verify the FDE of the A2A Cessna and the wave animation and reflection of my DX10 install with Steve's fixer and FSWClite shader. The weather was also exactly the same as the "nice weather" FSX theme. Light wind, good visibility a few fluffy cumulus and a glorious bright sun. I wish I had taken a picture to compare with a screenshot... now it is all only in my mind.

[PRB]

Back in the "olden days" when L-1011s were still in service, I rode in one, sitting mid-fuselage, over the wing, window seat. It seemed like the side of the fuselage was moving inboard and outboard. After I while I noticed it was correlated with the wing flexing. If the wing bent downwards, the fuselage wall would move outwards. When the wing came up, the fugelage came inwards. Not by much, but enough... Never experienced that on any airplane before. Still want one for FS though...

[flyinggoldfish]

Have you ever had a real-world experience that colored your view of certain FS planes or liveries? I just got back from a fantastic European holiday that included a couple of flights on RyanAir. Having had that experience, I can tell you there's no way I'll ever fly their livery in FSX. Not even with the incredible PMDG NGX. Ugh.

Yup, not an uncommon sentiment from Ryanair passengers unfortunately...

[Firekitten]

My boyfriend's sister flew into Prestwick on ryanscare a few Christmases ago from Dublin... hers was the one that went off the runway because it came in too darn fast... Those guys and their speed turnarounds and no go arounds scare me too much to fly with them.

Different experiences though? hmm...

Only that Mr Piper's chippie, while awesome, feels far too spacious in comparison to the real thing, and that I prefer my 152 over Carenado's... (At least my paint isn't mirrored bitches!

[TheGrunt]

I have once flown with Ryan Air in my life and that is most likely the last, unless there is some very good reason to hop on their planes. It just feels so cheap that you get more comfort and service in your local bus line. I've also flown with really good budget airlines, like Air Berlin, Norwegian and with nowadays mostly a SAS feeder, Blue1. Those three are lightyears ahead of Ryan Air.

I don't need air travel being a luxurious event, though it is nice to upgrade on the Business Class on the vacation flights. But there needs to be certain level of comfort, service and feeling of control to assure passenger that he/she is in good hands. Stories how Ryan Air handles their workers doesn't help here at all: if they don't care their workers, they sure don't their passengers.

I gladly pay the premium to get something else than Ryan Air. And in many cases, Ryan Air isn't even the cheapest or is that only marginally especially with a luggage, unless you get those few dirt cheap tickets on every flight. But I guess Ryan Air fares good as long as there are people to whom all is that matters is price. But I don't pay money for s*** either, so I'll pass.

[Firekitten]

That is if the plane even gets you to the destination :P

For flying between the UK and Ireland (Boyfriend's family are in Dublin) I prefer Aer Lingus or even just the boat... Its actually faster to get the swift ferry (catamaran) between Holyhead and Dublin port than to get to the airport, check in, board, fly, unload and get out the other side... who'da thunk it? Plus the first class compartment on the boat is a lot more comfortable than RyanScare or Aer Fungus!

[HighGround22]

Last commercial flight I had was a 737, back seat against the bulkhead with an incredibly rude 300 lb. woman in the row seat next to me. I don't fit the window seat in the 737 very well anyway, but this flight was somethin' special.

.
Sheesh, that sounds so VERY similar to an experience of mine, but in a DC9 (right abreast those pea-pickin' engines!).

Cramped rear, window seat that scarcely held my (then) 220lb, 6'1" frame, and a 300+lb obstreperous woman next to me with a smelly rug rat that never stopped bleating and wailing all the way from Toronto to Halifax.

I was never so happy to disembark, in my entire experience!

[Firekitten]

Worst person to sit next to on an aircraft for me.... Old Indian man that was around 25-300lbs and took up 1 and a half seats leaving me crushed against the window, stank of stale sweat and did nothing but eat disgusting tandoori crisps the entire trip... WORST HOUR OF MY LIFE.

[flyinggoldfish]

My boyfriend's sister flew into Prestwick on ryanscare a few Christmases ago from Dublin... hers was the one that went off the runway because it came in too darn fast... Those guys and their speed turnarounds and no go arounds scare me too much to fly with them.

Oooh, I had a friend on that flight too.... She's not got a brother though, that'd be too weird! In fairness to that pilots it was found by the AAIB that insufficient deicing fluid had been used on the runways and taxiways, although the co-pilot also failed to communicate the icy conditions properly to the Captain after checking the ATIS....

[Bjoern]

The only good thing about flying is the view from above. If not for that, I wouldn't do any kind of flying at all.




It's always the same aircraft types, always booked to the last seat, always a f++++++ small child somewhere in the cabin and I never can afford a bottle of water or a snack at the airport.
Going by high speed rail might take a lot longer, but it's oh-so-much more enjoyable. Barely affordable food and drinks at the station, pleasantly empty carriages on off-peak times, a separate "shut the f+++ up" compartment at no extra charge and - maybe best of all - legroom deserving the name. And no security checks. And you can use your laptop as you see fit.
I've never managed to sleep much, if at all in an airplane*, but stick me into an Inter City Express and I'm snoring all the way through.



*To be fair, the view has to do something with it

[Firekitten]

Oooh, I had a friend on that flight too.... She's not got a brother though, that'd be too weird! In fairness to that pilots it was found by the AAIB that insufficient deicing fluid had been used on the runways and taxiways, although the co-pilot also failed to communicate the icy conditions properly to the Captain after checking the ATIS....

Was a pretty scary one... though she went a bit mad at the airline though... never piss off a corporate tax inspector...
You're right, it was the runway, but with Ryanscare's usual routine... it didn't help. They always come in fast.

[flyinggoldfish]

I miss BMI, they used to be fantastic fro hopping between London and Dublin...

Oddly enough, there was only one thing that (nearly) spoiled my love of aviation, getting refused for Aer Lingus' pilot training scheme on the grounds of my eyesight many years ago - couldn't even look at a plane for months after that...

Everything else - mid atlantic engine failure and emergency landing, severe gusting crosswinds landing on 16 @ EIDW nearly having us on the deck rather early (we were the last one in before the closed due to excessive winds!), flying out of the US shortly after 911, my first (very bumpy) flight in a C172, queues, ignorant security and immigration staff, missed flights, delays, aircraft gone tech, chair kickers, fat people, insufficient legroom and bad food - are all part of the experience!

I'm still like a big kid with my nose pressed to the window every time I'm even near an airport... Which makes life awkward living under the short finals to EGAC! I can't help but look up, even though I know it's almost always one of the three usual types that operate there....

[Mickey D]

Have you ever had a real-world experience that colored your view of certain FS planes or liveries? I just got back from a fantastic European holiday that included a couple of flights on RyanAir. Having had that experience, I can tell you there's no way I'll ever fly their livery in FSX. Not even with the incredible PMDG NGX. Ugh.

Another aside; I've always considered myself a bit of a Boeing man. We flew Delta's 767 across the pond from Atlanta to Dublin, and one of their A330's back to Atlanta from Rome. The A330 won, hands-down, for comfort and space. No contest. It's changed how I look at sim Airbuses as well.

Did it have the " pay to use " toilets or was it a budget flight with outside toilets?

[Firekitten]

What like these?

<iframe width="420" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/6VLYpKGVBUg" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

[jankees]

I'll never use any northworst airlines textures in the sim, flying with them felt like flying Kafka Airlines. In those days I regularly flew between Amsterdam and Detroit, and booking KLM could land you in a nw monster plane, so I flew via Frankfurt, or Heathrow (and we know how awful that is), anything really, just to avoid those idiots. Via Frankfurt once found us in a 747 with only 6 passengers, including us three. The service on that flight was just fantastic....so I do fly Lufthansa in the sim occasionally.
Heathrow, I don't think I ever used that in the sim either, they lose my luggage every single time for some reason..."Ah, the luggage of Mr.Blom! Where shall we send it this time? He's flying to Sydney, so why not.....ReyKjavik?" or something similar..

[kilo delta]

It's easy to knock Ryanair, but you have to admire (though not necessarily like) what MOL has achieved with the airline since he took over the helm.
There is a lot of BS spouted in the media as regards safety and pennypinching by the airline. Considering it's size, Ryanair has an exemplary safety record and the pilots that I personally know who fly with the airline are very content to be there and are as professional in their airmanship as any airline pilot the world over. If I'm going on holidays with the family, with upteen items of luggage I'll fly with the regular airlines. If I'm going to a Premiership match, quick visit to relatives in the UK, or an exhibition or 1 day or weekend event, then Ryanair fit's the bill perfectly.



Now, in regards to the question "Is the real world wrecking your 'simming?"

Yep...and I couldn't be happier! After over 5 years of sitting at home, wallowing in pain,self pity and bouts of depression, I'm finally back in employment. It's not the best job in the world, but it's a step back on the ladder and gives me hope that I am now doing something productive with my time. Unfortunately my FSX time has to all extents, vanished, but I'll still keep purchasing the odd addon here and there for when I can grab 20 mins of Sim time.