In a nutshell, sims are mostly crap for reproducing handling qualities.
Great machine for practising for the awful day "it" happens, but apalling for giving you accurate "feel" for the plane.
Treat the sim like a gigantic expensive "Compass Test" for qualifying to fly the real aircraft and don't blame yourself for the not-so-accurate performance.
Interesting to note the varied causes for Airline total losses over the last half century, yet we're still obsessed with the "V1 cut" and other manoeuvres in the LPC/OPC menu rather than assessing some of the other HF decisions/actions losing lives and hulls.
I once asked why the roll control of a certain once popular aircraft could not be made more realistic and the answer was cost-the CAA would charge too much to test fly and approve the new more authentic feel, which could have been bolted/programmed in with minimal expense.
Perhaps we could ask WHO is actually test-flying and certifying these otherwise very faithful simulators, how much ACTUAL poling time do they have on type, their relationship to the manufacturers of both sim and aircraft and the commercial urgency to get the beast signed off and earning money?
Try allowing a low hours line-trained F/O to handle the real aircraft at 41,000 feet and observe the phugoids!
I dread being in the bog, trousers around my feet when the rookie has to control the trim runaway or A/P disconnect with NO experience of the "bungee" control effect at cruise altitude.
As I ricochet off the floor and the ceiling attempting to return to the flight deck I will curse those in the regulatory, supervisory and training empires who regard it as a MORTAL SIN to permit crews to hand-fly the aircraft to top of climb.
I would argue that pilots who have not REGULARLY hand flown the aircraft, at all corners of the normal operating spectrum, are not qualified so to do in the event of automatics failures. If to qualify I have to hand fly at flare height, then why not at cruise altitude?
Is there any connection here with contrbutory causes relating to AF447?
