Writing a diary of sorts for the first 250 flight hours of my flight sim journey. Not only do I want to memorialize my amazing experience, but also want to show new pilots how I approached things to perhaps give some ideas.
Prepping for the MSFS
I had my eyes on MSFS when MS announced the launch pre-2020. I had big plans – good gear, YouTube channel, streaming etc. First step was building a computer. I went “go big go home” back in 2020 and built myself a solid water cooled rig. In 2024 my rig is “dated” but it still gets the job done:
I9-9900K 3.6 GHZ
32 GB of RAM
Nvidia RTX 2080 ti
2 cooling pumps and reservoirs, 2 radiators, CPU and Video Card water blocks, lots of fans, etc. Mostly Corsair components.
Video of my build:
Then I bought my first flight sim hardware. Specifically:
Yoko Yoke
Logitech Power Quadrant
Logitech peddles
Streamdeck
The Beginning
Bought the special edition of MSFS or whatever the premium edition was and got to flying. At the time, no real “payware” so just fooled around with the stock planes. Had zero idea what I was doing, and pretty much played “EZ mode”. No cold starts, just got into random planes and started flying. Unfortunately, this wasn’t the correct approach for me. I ended up playing MSFS like an arcade game, just flying around and not “learning” the ins and out of being a sim pilot. As a result, after about 20 hours, I got a bit bored. Then life happened (new daughter, new hobbies, etc.) and eventually the flight equipment went into the basement and then I’m playing games like Monster Hunter, Elden Ring, etc. on my “flight sim rig”
The Past Three Months
This is when the journey really took off and I became a “sim pilot”. Saw my Yoko yoke in the basement and I also saw online reports of the improvements to MSFS, and the release of a lot of “add ons” by outside developers. Told myself, “I should try MSFS again!” and the rest is history.
Picked up the SWS Kodiak 100 as my first payware plane. I read good reviews and wanted to “learn” the details of aircraft. A good choice for me, but I was a little over my head. I blew the engine more than a few times on cold starts so I had to learn how to adjust mixture, propellor and power in specific, nuances ways. Landing was an adventure and many passengers died.
I liked the “look and feel” of the G1000 nxi, but I grew frustrated with using my mouse and keyboard to use it. I was bending over closely to the screen trying to see the tiny letters and getting carpal tunnel syndrome. As a result, I bought my first piece of nice hardware since I bought the Yoko – a RealSimGear AP panel with heading/alt knobs and the basic buttons for a Garmin auto-pilot. Made life so much easier!
Also started to learn flight planning. My first app was Little Nav, which I still use today from time to time. Started to plan detailed routes, upload them into the G1000, etc.
And finally, started to soak in a lot of YouTube videos. Beckett, A320 pilot, and many more. Would fly and have the videos in the background. Sometime actively listening, sometimes just passively. Just wanted to learn through osmosis.
Now I almost always fly with cold start and hard settings. I’ve come a long way.
Airliners!
Honestly, I thought flying airliners would be boring. But I read about the PMDG 737-800, and since I live in Seattle and routinely drive by KBFI and KRNT (and I’m 15 minutes from KSEA) and this is a Boeing town (dad was a C-130 flight engineer during Vietnam era and worked at Boeing for 30 years), I said, “why not” and picked up the PMDG.
Became hooked on airliners. Learned how to cold start one, and then I started to get the hang of ILS, RNAV and other advanced auto pilot systems. I also learned that flying airliners on long hauls fit my “real world” lifestyle. I am a busy guy, with a toddler in the house, which requires me to step away at a moments notice for child rearing duties and work. Getting the rush of a successful take-off, cruising on auto pilot at 35,000 feet, and being able to step away to deal with “real life” for a few hours was perfect for me. I loved the PMDG 737-800 and still fly it regularly today.
Picked up the Fenix A320 as my third payware purchase and blown away. Just great fidelity, graphics, etc. I did realize that my computer, though capable and I can run MSFS on mostly high settings, is a little dated. Regardless, the PMDG became a hangar queen and I put in at least 50+ hours in the A320. I’m very confident in it and switch back between the A320 and 737.
More Hardware and Software support.
As a result of my love for the A320, picked up the Thrustmaster Captain Pack stick and throttle. Elevated my emersion. Also started picking up new applications and software. Specifically:
Streamdeck XL (using this for most flight controls, including avionics/nav, and the smaller streamdeck for camera positions and general “quality of life” controls.
Dug up two old iPads and use one for the the PMDG FCU port.
Sennheiser Headphone amplifier.
Replaced my monitor with the latest LG 45” OLED. Used a very very dated old Samsung monitor as my 2nd screen.
My set-up is a cord disaster and my GF rolls here eyes when she seems my office. Eventually I’ll clean it up and make it look pretty.
Volanta (flight log management). The regular logbook in MSFS is not inspiring. Volanta has a bit more functionality. I have a subscription.
Simbrief – pretty necessary for airliner flight planning, and I use it for most planes I use.
Navigraph (got a subscription) – I like it, though I go back an forth on whether Little Nav is better.
OnAir – for a “career mode”. Now have a small airline with about $4 million in the bank and a few of my planes.
Flight control replay
Lordy’s “Axis and Oh’s” and lots of custom streamdeck profiles for my planes
GSX (disabled, just too buggy and negatively impacted my performance)
FSLTL – traffic add-on
New Planes
After I got the airliners down I started to expand my payware fleet.
Bae 146. What a gorgeous plane and fun to fly. My only issue is the dated auto-pilot system. I love old school gauges, but I definitely lean more modern auto-pilot. Somewhat of a hangar queen atm but I hear the revamped Bae will have more modern auto pilot so that should suit me well.
Vision Jet – A nice looking plane, but a little too arcade like feel for me. I’m sure I’ll get back into it, but for now focusing on planes I feel like have a better feel.
Comanche – I mean everyone knows it is nice. I enjoy flying it and just starting to get the hang of it. I do detest the basic Garmins in them. I know the G1000 NXI very well but the 430/530 I have trouble with. I’m considering getting the RealSimGear 430/530 panels, but they are pricey. But I suspect the panel will make me enjoy the older planes with the 430/530.
COWS DA 40. I nice aircraft. Not sure its “role” for me, but enjoy flying it, though it is a bit small for my tastes and seems a little toyish.
FSR 500 – Wow, this is a nice plane. Took me a bit to learn prepping and flying it without breaking something. G1000 Nav system which I love. This plane is gonna compete with my Kodiak for my non-airliner time. I wish it was a tad faster, but I’m gonna sink a ton of hours into it.
The Kodiak is still battling with the 737 and A320 for my favorite plane. Spent near the entire weekend in the Kodiak. I just love its versatility and I’ve finally managed to land it decently on the regular. The FSR could top the list as I get more flight time. She’s fun.
What’s Next?
Would like to upgrade my hardware when funds allow. Been window shopping the Throttletek throttles and Virtual Fly goodies. Put simply, I wanted to upgrade from my Logitech and Thrustmaster hardware. One day hopefully.
Have my eyes on the Leonardo MD-80. Would like a study level business jet at some point (took out the TBM 930 and really enjoyed it, but its depth was kinda lacking – loved the speed though).
So that’s my journey…..
