AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2014 - 84

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Decades of research have yet to produce a definitive
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At the same time, controlled experiments
conducted in recent years have called into
question just how realistic an aviation simulation needs to be to give pilots a meaningful
learning experience and build skills that
transfer into the real-world cockpit.
FAA-funded research conducted at
the University of Illinois in 2005 found no
significant pilot performance differences
between PC-ATDs, flight training devices
(more expensive systems distinguished
in part by a faithful replica of a particular
aircraft cockpit and controls), and actual
aircraft among groups of pilots given instrument proficiency checks. Studies conducted
by Volpe National Transportation Systems
have found no discernable difference in
pilot performance when full-motion simulators are used with the motion turned off.
Researchers in the Netherlands, however, were surprised to find that aerobatic
students gained no advantage, in terms
of execution of maneuvers, when given a
preflight simulator session, compared to
counterparts who trained in the aircraft
alone-although students who used simulators were ultimately able to master more
maneuvers in a given amount of time.
Charles M. Oman, director since 1992 of
the Man Vehicle Lab at the Massachusetts
Institute of Technology, said decades of
research have yet to produce a definitive
answer to one of aviation simulation's central questions: how much realism is enough?
And what kind of realism matters most for
improving pilot performance?
84 | AOPA PILOT April 2014

But there's no question that the realism of computer-based flight simulation
is rapidly improving and costs are diminishing-with the potential to make flight
training better and less expensive. "We're
probably the poster child for that," said
Redbird Flight Simulations CEO Todd
Willinger. "At Skyport, our flight training laboratory [in San Marcos, Texas], our
private students do as much time in the
simulator as they do in the airplane itself."
Willinger said Skyport students average about the same amount of total training
time as private pilot students who train
strictly in aircraft, but with roughly half
that time spent in Redbird's advanced
aviation training devices. Redbird is so
confident in its technology that it offers
fixed-price training, starting at $9,995 for
a private pilot certificate.
"We can show a definitive economic
model based on the use of these devices
that is more cost-effective for the flight
training student," and also for the flight
school, Willinger said.
Mike Altman, president and CEO
of Precision Flight Controls in Rancho
Cordova, California, said the FAA decision
to limit the amount of time pilots can log
in a simulator contrasts with foreign customers who are relying more heavily than
ever on simulation to train pilots. "We're
going to continue to make them better and
better," Altman said. "We're hoping that the
FAA will recognize this."
AOPA
EMAIL james.moore@aopa.org
http://www.sigtronics.com http://www.sigtronics.com
AOPA Pilot Magazine - April 2014

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