IcePack,
I cannot tell about the 14000ft stuff, you may be right, but I can tell it is still pretty easy to over control at 35000ft in a simulator. IMO the handling would still require a LOT of attention.
For the record, despite the fuel in the tail, the CG for AF447 was still very much fwd compared to the ideal target for fuel saving.
OK365,
You are most probably correct.
I'm not too aware of the different possibilities for the sim as I have never occupied that back seat. What I can tell is that the instructor seemed surprised too.