Originally Posted by
parkfell
The “flight sim nuts” invariably stay as ‘flight sim nuts’. They have been known to have their live on line flying skills assessed by a current TRE. I know at least airline pilot who carried out this rôle !! I was surprised when I was told that by a reliable source.
I maintain that a 4 sector day in an aircraft is infinitely less stressful than trying to do a flight on any flight sim, between the system bugs and sim crashes combined with the nightmare of trying to navigate the various online tools for vatsim etc for which you need a degree in IT, I shudder to think back to all the bad memories.
Strolling down to the gate at 6am coffee in hand and getting on board to start with the prelims and getting the show on the road has proven to be a far more stress free and unimaginably more enjoyable experience.
Anyhow, I agree, those with a burning passion for flight and to be upfront, those who feel their life wouldn't be complete without becoming a pilot - they will make it. This situation is very serious, but it will pass, like all other storms.
My advice to anyone sitting around, be they in school or university or laid off from another job they got involved with, I would advise doing something useful. Try to learn a new language, get a job in the local supermarket or volunteer, do something. When all this is over, it wouldn't be beyond reason to be asked in an interview what you did with your time during the COVID crisis. It will be a great indicator of what kind of a person you are. Did you lounge about all day or did you try to advance yourself in another area? Lots of brownie points I expect for those who can say they signed up to an online language course or helped the local volunteer group in checking up on the elderly neighbours etc.