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American 327 Clear to Land
Grown men sitting in front of computers flying virtual airplanes in a 2 dimensional world is something many people just don’t get. I guess you have to have it in you. At least that is what I normally answer when the question comes my way. Stranger yet is the typical reaction of our partners in life who invariably ask, "are you going to play that game again tonight?" No, they just don’t get it either.
Flight simulators stopped being “games” several years ago when independent developers around the world started designing new aircraft that could be loaded into and flown on flight simulator programs. Those designers, nearly all, provided their artful designs for free. In time, those designs became more and more realistic in model and function. Today’s advanced add-on aircraft models, mostly pay-ware, are so technically advanced they rival flight simulators used in real world flight training. Add to the aircraft advancement a series products such as satellite mapped terrain and surface features, three dimensional clouds, real world weather programs, and high speed computers with advanced 3d graphics cards. We now have the components for realistic flight simulation.
VATSIM
Now that flight simulation has reached this amazing level of realism, many PC pilots have taken simulation to a much higher level by joining with other people around the world on the VATSIM (Virtual Air Traffic Simulation) network. VATSIM offers serious flight simmers the ablity to excape computer generated air traffic and air traffic control, replacing them with real people in real time. Members are located around the world. You find them staffing air traffic control positions, piloting VFR flights over incredibly accurate scenery, or even flying over oceans communicating with other members who control oceanic airspace over HF radios.
Check it out for yourself. Come join us on the VATSIM Network
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