Hi there,
What would you guys recommend for beginner training books and software? Any help is greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance.
My favorite book, although not for MSFS, has always been â Microsoft Flight Simulator X For Pilots: Real World Training by Jeff Van West and Kevin Lane-Cummingsâ
Otherwise, YouTube is your friend 
2 Likes
I donât have book suggestions. But I do have some YouTube channel recommendations. These are all US-centric butâŠwell, thatâs what I know.
(For clarification, this is real-world flight training.)
1 Like
Hi, Thanks so much for the help and links. Iâll check them out and thanks again. Iâm in the USA.
Pilotâs Handbook of Aeronautical Knowledge (faa.gov) This is one I had all my students get when I was a flight instructor.
If you need a break from reading, I also have some basic to advanced tutorials on my YouTube channel from systems and buttons on the Cessna 152, traffic patterns, short and soft field takeoff and landings to all sorts of instrument approach procedures. www.thecorporatepilotdad.com (YouTube redirect) I am an advocate of aviation and if you have a question I will take the time to help answer any question you might have.
I am a former CFI and currently a corporate pilot if you couldnât guess by the name.
3 Likes
The FAA site has a wealth of information likeâŠ
The Airplane Flying Handbook
https://www.faa.gov/regulations_policies/handbooks_manuals/aviation/airplane_handbook/
The Runway Safety Videos are also great
Runway Safety â Videos and Animation (faa.gov)
Hope this helpsâŠ
Oh, yes, the PHAK, listed above, is a great resource. As is the Airplane Flying Handbook.
If you want to learn to be a real pilot, and you live in the US, read the Aeronautical Information Manual (AIM). (Bring some coffee, though! The PHAK and AFH are much easier reads!)
3 Likes
And when done with those there is the Instrument Flying Handbook. Guys learning today are lucky to get these publications free off the internet. Us semi-older guys had to pay for all of them and carry a bag of books around.
1 Like
How close is MSFS 2020 too real life flying? Thanks so much for all your help and information and links.
just wanted to jump in on this conversation and say âdepends who you askâ in response to your question. Itâs a very general answer but this question usually ends up in an argument over XP11/P3D/MSFS and which is most realistic. IMO, MSFS is a developing platform with sky-high potential. XP11 and P3D are both amazing platforms too but defo lack on graphics pre-addons. So these two platforms require a bit of investment to get them up to scratch but their physics are awesome - some may say better than MSFS. My belief is that the GA flying in MSFS is better than the other platforms, whereas the commercial standard isnât quite up to scratch, however the A32NX mod has made this sim my go to platform as of now. On the other hand, P3D & XP11 (with add-ons) is very realistic. Now, back on topic, how close is MSFS to real life? Well, nothing comes close to the feeling of your hand around a proper set of controls, so of course no sim comes close, but the closest in GA, I would say is MSFS. XP11 as of now for commercial. P3D is a tad dated IMO. Like I said, it really does depend who you ask - Iâve always loved the Microsoft flight simulators, so obviously going to stay on this platform as I believe it can only get better, especially with the team at Asobo stating their 10 year dedication to the platform if Iâm not mistaken. SDK development will certainly allow the sim to get up to the high-standards the community expects as this will allow 3rd party devs to develop their scenery/aircraft to a higher standard.
Happy Flying! 
2 Likes
This is an excellent reference: Amazon.com: Everything Explained for the Professional Pilot 13th Edition (0792745031233): Richie Lengel: Books There is also an iOS version. It even explains differences between Part 91, 121, and 135 operations
1 Like
In the âXP11 worldâ they recommend âStick and rudderâ by Wolfgang Langewiesche. Maybe a bit dated but I find it quite readable. It made me understand certain phenomena better.
1 Like
Agreed. Iâm currently reading it. Even though Iâve been learning about aviation for ages, I find it very interesting since it comes from a time where electronics and GPS didnât exist and even radio navigation was in its infancy.
So the book deals soley with how plane, air and pilot interact.
Just get FS 2004. It actually had theory stuff you could read before the flying lesson. It was really from beginners to advanced and you could even get your virtual private Pilot license if you pass all the check rides. It had all the basic stuff from how airplanes fly to how to navigate with VORs for example.
I learned so much with it. Sadly this is not implemented into the new sim. I donât understand why , because you can just copy and paste it into the new sim but thatâs an other topic.
To all the literature mentioned before. All great stuff but I think for a beginner in flight siming a little to much. No offence though 
Hi there, I have subscribed to your channel on YouTube.
1 Like
There is a hilarious, sad, and deep irony that (good and reasonable) questions like this have to be asked in the forum for the software literally titled âMicrosoft Flight Simulatorâ.
Youâd think theyâd have, oh, I donât know, provided some basic documentation and instructions related to the fundamentals of operating simple GA Aircraft, etc. Unfortunately the Cessna tutorials leave a LOT to be desired, checklists are incomplete, etc.
I wasnât speaking about the Sim.
1 Like
Oh of course, youâre talking about additional training, I definitely get that.
Iâm just pointing out that its a bit ironic. I would have expected a flight sim for the masses to have a pretty good set of learning materials available on release that would keep most people busy for a while. Unfortunately that isnât the case at all.
Also:
Check out the phone app ARSim. I found it to be good practice for working on basic pilot communication skills.
Ok thanks I will check that outâŠ
1 Like