However, I'm concerned that messing about on a toy simulator without a professional instructor might do more harm than good.
DIRECTOR I share your concern that someone might, using a sim program, confuse the real world with that of the virtual. Obviously, the computer games do not simulate traffic as well as the simulators we use for instruction at the facilities.
That being said, the Sims do a remarkable job of getting one to "think like a controller." One of the students I recently had in En Route radar class was a gamer. He'd cut his teeth on a simulation of Los Angeles Center Sector 19 - a position I actually worked in the late 70s and early 80s.
I gotta tell you, this kid was good!
He had certainly picked up some fundamental skills from the game. He'd been introduced to these simulations in his CTI school here in Puerto Rico - CTI is a college program for prospective controllers - and there was enough supervision to make the training worthwhile.
So, I guess my belief is that, by themselves, who knows the value of these things; but with just a bit of supervision, they can be valuable training tools.
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