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Logging of Level-D flight sim time?

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Fearless Tower

Well-known member
Joined
Mar 28, 2006
Posts
275
How does one log time in a Level D flight simulator? Is it logged in the same manner as a FTD, or does the time count toward airplane multi-engine, day/night, simulated instrument and total time? This is of course assuming an appropriate CFI/sim instructor is operating the thing. And no, I'm not talking about the microsoft thing, I'm referring to the full motion sim
 
You log it under the "simulator" column.

But to be totally honest, nobody cares how much sim time you have. Totally worthless, unless it's for the purposes of maintaining currency.

Of course, I might be wrong on this, but I've never logged any of my sim time (well, Ok, I DID log some EA-6B Prowler time, but only as a memento), and it never hindered me.

Of course, I suppose there are caveats. If you're buying a type rating (say a 747-400) but have no job lined up, then I'd log it, I suppose. But again, it only goes under the "Simulator" column. Instrument time is all "simulated" and as far as I know it's not logged as "PIC"

I could be wrong, though.
 
Sim time isn't flight time, and therefore not total time. It's simulator time.

Which is used as credit for flight time for the application towards certain certificates, ratings, and currency.

For people pursuing instrument or commercial the use of sim time can be a cost reducer. In the case of the instrument rating it also is in many aspects easier to teach/learn certain things in the sim.
 
Sim time isn't flight time. It shouldn't be logged as such.

Even on an 8470 form, the time spent in a simulator isn't flight time or total time; it's simulator time. If one has 1,470 hours toward the 1,500 ATP minimum, and one has 30 hours in the sim, one fills out the application 8710 form as having 1,470 hours of flight experience.
 
Sim time isn't flight time. It shouldn't be logged as such.

I don't think anyone said that. My post was merely clarifying it does have a use and that is as a credit for aeronautical experience for several certificates/ratings. It isn't worthless as Gringo implies depending on your given situation.
 
Buy a small log book and keep all your sim time in it separate to your main log(s), that way if someone wants that info you'll have it. I do not count it as total time but I have had companies ask me about my simulator time when going through the interview process.
 
Better yet, do yourself a favor and buy a good electronic logbook (they usually don't come up with 2+2=7 like I occasionally do). Mine is set up to track both sim and FTD time, but neither are included in total flight time.
 
Level D sim time IS SIMULATOR time. An FTD is not SIMULATOR time. In my logbook there is a column for SIMULATOR time. This is where I would put my Level D Sim time, if I logged it. But the company knows how much time I've been in the box, so I do not even bother with it.
Log the LEVEL D Sim time for the purpose of obtaining a rating/certificate. Do not count it towards total time when interviewing for a job, though.
 
Thanks for the inputs...my logbook only has a column for 'Ground Trainer' which is what I used to log the 2 hours that I did on a FTD when I did my instrument rating.

Normally, I wouldn't care about logging it, but it was about as close to flying a 767 as I'm likely to ever get and I was able to get approaches in for currency.
 

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