Introduction

We are sim-flying aboard the series of the Flight Simulator of Microsoft since 1998. The idea came to us at that time whether we couldn't maintain our proficiency in some sense for the French Private Pilot Licence (PPL) we had obtained in 1981 as unluckily we had not been able to keep flying. Albeit the Microsoft Flight Simulators were not -and still don't are- homologated like a real trainer by the FAA -the US federal aviation agency- it seemed to us however -and further with the more advanced versions of FS which were released since FS2002 (as the more ancient ones, like FS98, can be comprised too)- that, with some method an protocols, one could, privately, maintain some proficiency into flying through the use of the FS series. The vastness of the world in Flight Simulator, on another hand, allows to access to locations we'll never be able to reach in the real life, as the FSs allow too to fine aesthetic experiences

As that had been interesting to us, we decided that we could put this experience to the service of the community of the flightsimmers. If, like we are, you are a former pilot who consider continuing his interest on serious basis, or if you are a flightsimmer who, not willing to eventually get into the real life and pass a PPL, however wants to practice seriously and with some realism, and, eventually, if, in any other case, you're flightsimming, you will find in those tutorials a wealth of advices, at the same time as far as the use of the flight simulator is concerned and as far as the practice of flight is, which will help you to a better practice of your flightsimming activities

We personally fly with FS2002 Professional Edition as our tutorials are based on that version of the sim. It seems obvious however that, by adapting what has to be (and especially all what concerns advanced tunings and, CAUTION! with all the necessary cautions to avoid any damage to your computer hardware or you software installations), a large lot of those advices -and, more obviously, all the practice of flight- may largely be used too with the other versions of FS -either the more recent, or the older ones

Enjoy your flights!