A Pilot’s life can be unhealthy sat there in a small cubicle eating the cheap airline in flight meals that increases your weight expectations. Mental health descending. Not passing medicals is an income destroyer. Only way to stop the button popping off your trousers is tighten the belt and put on the airline expected smile to customers. Under pressure? Tell yourself to shut up and hide it.
Many flight simulator users are similar. Sitting down on a computer in an heat filled room for hours holding on to the control stick or watching autopilot with a stack of cups and plates of drink and food spread everywhere. Many more are alone and separate.
But the community can help!
Share your thoughts and ideas on how to develop an amazing home cockpit environment?
A TV with a separate connection (Coax recommended) to watch TV or movies on during flights. Streaming just increases the possibility of a CTD or other issues.
A ceiling or floor fan going to keep the air from getting stagnate. The breeze feels nice too.
A music player. Tunes are better at 35,000 feet
21+ Substances (if you’re into that sort of thing. You might not be able to drink flying a real plane, but nobody is stopping you from doing it in a virtual one. Please consume legally and responsibly)
A discord with some like minded individuals to keep you company.
Natural lighting. Open those blinds, a little Vitamin D won’t kill ya.
Calisthenics every other hour or so to promote blood flow
Not me… I sit in front of my screen with my sidestick and throttle quadrant, to spend the first 30 minutes preparing the aircraft for an 10-hour flight, pushback, taxi, and take off. Once airbourne, I set my nav systems and Autopilot on, and give the ATC handling to my AI copilot.
Then I got up from my chair, and start doing other things like do some work, exercise, taking a walk, go out shopping, watch a movie, socialise with my friends at a nearby cafe. And if the flight is at night, I leave it to go to bed. In the morning I would wake up and the flight should be just in time for descent, and landing. That’s when I sit back on my chair, do my preparation, and do my approach and landing.
I don’t sit in front of my computer during that whole flight… I have other better things to do in the mean time.