I've never had a flight simulator but I'm curious. Can a nice simulator teach you to fly a Cessna. The article on the first post of this thread answers my question because the kid was able to take off and crash land, but it doesn't say how long he practiced the simulator. Do you guys think Colt took it to the limit with the sim and learned everything perfectly maybe spending hundreds of hours to get his results of a take off and rough broken plane landing. Or did he just spend a couple hours playing around and learn the controls. I guess my question is can a simulator give you Colt's experience of taking off and crash landing or do you think a simulator learned perfectly could give you a command of the aircraft with nice take offs and landings. The article stated that the simulator used by Colt had an exact replica dashboard of a Cessna 182 turbo, and that's the plane he waited on and decided to steal. I wonder how long he practiced.

I bought a Microsoft Flight Simulator when I started ground school. I think a simulator could give you enough knowledge to do exactly what he did. I think he could have landed better but he probably gave up when things didn't work out like it does in the simulator. That's probably why he crashed. I actually think it's easier to fly a real plane because you have situational awareness and can feel what's happening. With a simulator your just seeing a small section of the sky.

A simulator does teach you how to read gauges maintain headings and a lot of stuff, but you never get the "Feel" until you get in a real plane. I don't think you could learn to make good landings till you actually practice. I'm still working on getting it right and probably always will.

I think he only taught himself to take off then fly the autopilot. He never landed one they crashed when he ran out of gas.

He only stole planes with good autopilots. If you have an old 180 or cub I'm pretty sure you were never at risk of having your airplane stolen.

It does show the importance of flying the airplane until it can't fly any more though.

Update.
http://www.avweb.com/avwebflash/news/BarefootBanditPleadsGuiltyMovieExpected_204841-1.html

L-19 wrote:Update.
http://www.avweb.com/avwebflash/news/BarefootBanditPleadsGuiltyMovieExpected_204841-1.html

Good that the proceeds will go to the victims. Bad that it will likely inspire copycats.

Stupid kid. His dreams of an aviation career are over, for all practical purposes. Engineering, maybe, but going to be extremely difficult to get a job with a record. Stupid kid.

Jaerl wrote:I bought a Microsoft Flight Simulator when I started ground school. I think a simulator could give you enough knowledge to do exactly what he did. I think he could have landed better but he probably gave up when things didn't work out like it does in the simulator. That's probably why he crashed. I actually think it's easier to fly a real plane because you have situational awareness and can feel what's happening. With a simulator your just seeing a small section of the sky.

A simulator does teach you how to read gauges maintain headings and a lot of stuff, but you never get the "Feel" until you get in a real plane. I don't think you could learn to make good landings till you actually practice. I'm still working on getting it right and probably always will.

Simulators are a lot more forgiving on landings. I used one prior to taking lessons. It definitely helps a lot with instrument training and a general idea of how things work BUT it was NOTHING like the bucking bronco first intro flight I had

In some respects, though, I think I still look at the instruments a lot more than I should. I'm working on that.

This really is sort of a sad story. All this kid needed was a father figure in his life. If he could have been guided in the right direction at the right time the outcome would have been so much different. We can see that he is intelligent and resourceful.

I have volunteered at OBAP's ACE camps in the past and I might be able to volunteer for the Civil Air Patrol in the future. However, in both of these programs, the parents are often the positive force that encourage their kids to join up. The kids that need the most help and guidance are the ones that are not aware of these programs, or are discouraged/not encouraged/not able ($) to participate.

Perhaps when I get back to Oregon, I should look into the Big Brother/Big Sister program.


As for this kid, honestly, it is just too late. Even if he turns his life around, he most likely won't be able to do anything with it.

Well, the Kid got 7 years.

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-201_162-573 ... ime-spree/

He got off light. They should have givin him the firing squad.

Amen!

Yeah, watched part of the sentencing on the news this morning. Disgusting. The judge's entire attitude was, "Oh you poor boy, your mommy potty trained you too early so nothing you have ever done is your own fault."

So many good people come from hard lives and horrible childhoods, but overcome it with intrinsically knowing right from wrong, and realizing hard work is the way out. This little jerk gets nothing but rewarded for hurting people.

Seven years... Time served already... Close to two years the way they figure time, good time credits another two or so. He'll be out in time for his movie premier.

Gump

Is there any restitution for the people who lost there property?
Some one commits a crime and there treated well and are given the right to make a movie.
What happen to the real victims? He should pay for the planes and property and restitution.
Not given a movie right. This country is going to hell real fast.

I believe he doesn't get any money from the movie, it all goes to the victims. He still is waiting on the sentencing on the federal charges, hopefully they throw the book at him.

GroundLooper wrote:Stupid kid. His dreams of an aviation career are over, for all practical purposes.

Au contraire. We're going to pay his room and board while he mingles every day with racketeers and drug dealers for seven years. He's got a bright future in aviation, and it may not even require a pilot's license. This phoenix shall rise and then burn again.

There will be a book deal and high profile interviews. Being a celebrity, and portrayed as a victim, and with newly acquired celebrity victim income, he'll probably be invited to some other country to learn how to fly legitimately. Then he'll probably buy and fly some plane much nicer than any of ours.

They had a segment on him this morning in Australia. Same media hype but at least he will never see a cent of the royalties as they will be going to his victims. Hope he learns from his jail time experience.

I disagree in general. I think you look this kid up in 20 years and will be surprised. I bet he's doing something good with his life and is very successful at it. There are lots of young petty criminals in this country that's think small and do small bad things.

The person with the capacity to do great good in the world also has the capacity for great evil. This kid has a lot of capacity. While what he did was bad it's not the same as some gang banger out raping and murdering.

He has a certain fearless out of the box take on life that I can't help but admire even if he has use it poorly in his youth. What do you think people said about Jesse James, wyatt erp, Einstein, Alexander the great, when they where his age. I kinda doubt it was that they sure are quiet, helpful, obedient, boys.

Just something to think on.

"Good" people, don't behave like this kid did. Having balls and being fearless to suit your own inner drive, as some here may identify with, does not equate to stealing, damaging, and destroying the lives of others. Over and over. That's a sign of the sociopath, brain wired wrong without empathy or impulse control.

Jesse James and Wyatt Earp were murderers. Quasi-legal at times, but still murderers. Alexander the Great was a sociopath and a mass-murderer. And Einstein, a pacifist, fits this equation how??? Was he not returning library books?

No, this kid is a punk thief, a feral child thanks to shit breeding and a cranker mommy, and is currently sitting where he needs to be for a loooong time.

Gump

He's got a very bright future. He'll be out in less than 3 years and the U.S. of A. will leave him to be a rich young man in his own little circle of spotlight. He won't need to steal planes or anything by the time he's done, because everything he ever wants will be handed to him... if he plays his cards right.

We don't punish him to prevent him from doing this again, we punish him to prevent others from doing this again.

We need to think bigger!