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A much-asked question! The truth is, RC flight simulators can give you a very realistic radio control flight training experience, all from the comfort of your own home.

'Sims' for personal computers first became available in the late 1980s, but chunky computer graphics and slow computer processors really limited their realism.
But throughout the '90s, with the rapid improvement in home computers, rc simulators quickly evolved in to an excellent radio control flight training aid, second only to side-by-side club instructor training.

For top-quality virtual radio control flying, the Phoenix rc flight simulator is a superb choice for beginners looking at getting in to the hobby, as well as for seasoned professionals looking at honing their competition skills - and for everyone in between too! The Phoenix rc flight sim first appeared in the mid-2000s. Phoenix Rc Flight Simulator free download, and many more programs. Download aerofly RC 8 - R/C Simulator for macOS 10.12.0 or later and enjoy it on your Mac. ‎. Please Check System Requirements prior to Purchasing. It is strongly recommended to use this software with a dedicated joystick or R/C controller with a least 4 independent axes. DESCRIPTION Learn to fly radio controlled (R/C) models with.

RC simulator popularity

Nowadays of course, with warp-speed computer processors and outstandingly realistic graphics, modern rc flight simulators such as Phoenix and RealFlight, for example, have become hugely popular. Sadly Phoenix has since been taken out of production (why??) but RealFlight thankfully still lives.

Such simulators have reached into many homes and have become a 'must have' rc flying accessory; they have helped countless novice rc pilots learn the basics of radio control flight, and expert pilots rehearse their aerobatic and 3D routines to a faultless performance.

How an RC flight sim works

A good quality rc simulator consists of very powerful software, loadable onto your computer via a CD or download. The sim may or may not include a realistic transmitter-based interface controller. Such a controller works in exactly the same way as a normal rc transmitter does but instead of sending a radio signal to the receiver in the model, the signal passes through a cable to drive the software installed on your computer.

Best Flight Simulator For Mac

RC flight simulators that don't include a controller can be used with your normal TX, although some of the cheaper sims do have a more limited number of compatible transmitters with which they will work. But using your own transmitter is in fact the best option because it lets you get 100% familiar with it.
Having said that, though, the controller supplied with the RealFlight sim is perfectly realistic and is indeed based on a Futaba eight channel TX, so it's not the end of the world if you do have to use a sim controller rather than your own TX.

Whichever TX you do use, whether your own or a supplied controller, the aircraft's response to your control input is precise and accurate, within reason, and the smooth graphics and realistic engine sounds (accurately matched to your throttle stick movements) really make you feel like you're standing on the flight line, flying the real thing.

That said, there are of course a few differences between virtual and real rc flight training which you'll need to get used to. For example, the wind effect on some rc flight simulators doesn't include unpredictable gusts. Also, using any zoom feature on a sim can distract you from getting used to your plane's true position and orientation relative to you and the ground, because you have no peripheral vision to aid you. But these are things that your real-life rc flight training will soon teach you!

As with everything else radio control, prices have dropped in recent years making a simulator quite affordable. And with most households now owning - or having access to - modern personal computers and laptops, sims have rocketed in popularity as a sensible and very effective training aid.

Modern day rc flight simulators such as Phoenix and RealFlight feature all the popular model aircraft types - planes, helicopters, multi-rotors, gliders and jets. Furthermore, you can try different camera angles including cockpit view. This is an excellent way of getting used to FPV flying, should you be interested in that.

Phoenix, since striking a deal with rc product giants Horizon Hobby, feature a lot of Horizon's aircraft from their ParkZone, HobbyZone and E-flite ranges. This is great news if you actually have one of their models, although you might need to tweak the flight characteristics on the sim to get it flying exactly like your model. And on that note, a good quality sim like Phoenix lets you edit many aircraft and flying site parameters, to suit your own flying style.
It's very sad that Phoenix is no longer in production, but if you can get a used one off eBay then do consider it.

Events such as pylon racing, spot landing, balloon bursting and limbo flying are available to really test your skills and online multi-player mode is also a great feature if you have a fast internet connection.

Most rc flight simulators feature a virtual flight school where professional rc pilots (from the real world) teach you everything from basic take off and landing techniques to advanced aerobatic maneuvers. Each lesson is narrated by the pilot, and TX stick movements are shown so you can see exactly what's happening and when.

Phoenix RC sim photos

Below are some screenshots from my Phoenix simulator, these are the kind of images that you can expect from modern rc flight simulators (click on images to view larger):

And below is a video of the Phoenix rc flight simulator...

Learning to fly radio control in this safe environment is as realistic as it gets without actually taking a trip to your local flying field. And of course it eliminates the dreaded aspect of learning to fly radio control - the damage zone!...

When learning to fly radio control there's a good chance that your aircraft will get damaged sooner or later, but learning on an rc flight simulator will help minimise those little 'incidents'.
Indeed, a big advantage with learning to fly on a sim is that it gets you used to the 'reverse control', or 'reverse co-ordination', which is the term used when the aircraft is flying towards you and the turns become reversed i.e. left is right and vice versa. This is an invaluable advantage because reverse control catches so many new rc pilots out in their early days.

Another big advantage of owning an rc flight simulator is that there's no excuse not to fly - even when the weather is against you, you can still be practising all those maneuvers from the comfort of home, all the time teaching yourself to become a much better radio control pilot ready for that next trip to the flying field.

Keeping it real on RC flight simulators

It's easy to see an rc flight sim as a glorified game consol, and you'd be forgiven for flying your virtual aircraft in as many crazy ways as possible and trying to do the most spectacular crash ever. But don't!

Remember that your sim is there to teach you to fly. When your virtual airplane or helicopter is spinning out of control, imagine that it's your actual aircraft and that it's going to cost you a few hundred bucks if you destroy it. Do all you can to try and recover, and get the aircraft back to earth safely.

In other words, don't let yourself get in to bad habits on your simulator because these will inevitably follow you onto the flying field. Of course have fun with it and enjoy every moment, but remember why you bought the simulator in the first place, and use it accordingly - as a serious training aid to your flying.

Remember - a computer doesn't crash the same way as a model airplane does! If you're serious about rc flying, get an rc flight simulator!

Other RC flight simulators

I've talked about Phoenix and RealFlight on this page simply because that's what I have and I can recommend either one. But other popular sims include FMS which is either a free download or sold in a package with 4 or 6 channel controller (and sometimes even bundled in with an RTF aircraft deal), Clearview, Reflex XTR and AeroFly Pro. This latter one, AeroFly, is right up there with Phoenix and RealFlight in terms of quality and is - at the time of writing - the only sim which is truly Mac compatible.

AeroSimRC is another one well worthy of consideration. Developed by an independent programmer, AeroSimRC is a very capable simulator that runs very smoothly on the computer. I'll be doing a review page on this one soon (expected October 2020).

Keeping updated

The radio control flying hobby is a fast moving one, and nothing stays still for very long.

RC flight simulator manufacturers are regularly releasing updates of their sims, whether it's releasing new aircraft or flying sites, or complete newer versions of the sim.

Make sure you get the most out of your sim by regularly checking the appropriate website for update news. Alternatively look for an update button within your sim, and this will lead you through the process.

RC flight sim shopping

Please support your local hobby store where you can, but otherwise Amazon is a great place for RC shopping these days, with all the big players selling there directly. Use the links below to click through...

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Page Update 2018: Sadly the Phoenix sim is no longer in production, a huge loss to the hobby IMO. But this page is still worth a read if you're thinking of buying a used Phoenix sim on eBay

For top-quality virtual radio control flying, the Phoenix rc flight simulator is a superb choice for beginners looking at getting in to the hobby, as well as for seasoned professionals looking at honing their competition skills - and for everyone in between too!

The Phoenix rc flight sim first appeared in the mid-2000s. Originally it was predominantly sold in the UK, but in October 2009 the company struck a deal with North American radio control distributing giants Horizon Hobby and since then Phoenix has been globally available and widely marketed.
As a result of the deal, the Phoenix rc flight simulator was offered with a radio (Spektrum DX4e or DX6i) included in the box, rather than just the software alone, as it was originally sold.

Above: the Phoenix with DX6i - a great combination indeed.

The quality of the Phoenix sim is outstanding and the realism of the aircraft is very good. Most of the flying sites are photo-realistic, and the overall virtual flying experience on the Phoenix rc flight simulator is superb.
On a personal note (I have RealFlight and Phoenix sims) flying on the Phoenix is even more realistic for me because several of the flying sites are close to my home area, so I've seen the sites in real life!

The Phoenix sim certainly does deliver all you'd expect a professional quality rc flight simulator to deliver, and the editing options of the aircraft are vast and comprehensive. This means that if you own one of the many aircraft available on the sim, there's an excellent chance that you can tweak the necessary specs and characteristics so that the virtual airplane, helicopter or glider exactly replicates your real one.

The choice of aircraft on the Phoenix rc flight simulator is good, with well over 100 and that list steadily grows.
Since the Horizon Hobby deal the tech team at Phoenix have added some of the more popular Horizon brand aircraft to the list, namely airplanes and helicopters from the HobbyZone, ParkZone, E-flite and Hanger 9 ranges, although it has to be said that not all of them fly true to the real thing with the default settings in place; some editing is need to make, for example, the ParkZone Radian fly more accurately.

The range of high-end competition airplanes and helicopters is very good, giving championship level pilots plenty of opportunity to hone their flying routines to perfection.

Phoenix RC simulator screenshots.

Below are a few screenshots taken from my own Phoenix rc flight simulator, click an image to view it larger...

Below is a demo of the Phoenix rc flight simulator, to illustrate the realism...

Phoenix vs. RealFlight

Without going in to a detailed side-by-side review, I can offer a few pointers if you're having trouble deciding which rc flight simulator to buy. I have and use both (RF G4.5 & Phoenix 3.0) so the differences outlined below are based on my own personal observations.
(Important: these pointers might not be valid with regard to later versions of both sims. They were good at the time of writing, but I accept that both sims have improved a lot since then.)

• Quality & realism: Both sims are excellent but for me Phoenix has the edge. The aircraft look slightly 'less' computer generated than the RF ones, and the lack of computer generated flying sites in Phoenix means that you're always flying in a photo-realistic place. Also, the Phoenix water-graphics are just outstanding, particularly the ripples created by helicopter downwash - very impressive! (see the Sea Ranger screenshot above).
  My main gripe is that the Phoenix sim planes do seem to be all underpowered on the default settings, and this is more noticeable in the IC planes and gas turbine jets.
• Choice of aircraft & flying sites: RF wins hands down on this one. Although Phoenix has well over 100 models now (and growing) the RF 'AddOn' CDs and Knife Edge forum member swap pages mean that a seemingly endless range of aircraft is available for the RF series of flight simulators. Similarly, there is a huge list of flying sites to choose from for the RealFlight sims, compared to Phoenix's.
• Ability to edit aircraft and scenery: Both sims offer comprehensive editing capabilities that the beginner won't need. Professional rc pilots would be very happy with the editing options, I think. All technical aspects of the aircraft design can be tweaked and changed as desired. As for scenery, the Phoenix flying sites aren't very editable simply because they are photo-realistic. The RF sites have more options and there's a long list of scenery objects that can be added to (or taken away from, or moved...) the sites, both the photo ones and the computer generated ones.
• Controller & Tx: Until the Phoenix-Horizon Hobby deal, the Phoenix rc flight simulator was never offered with a transmitter-based controller, but the RealFlight one was. The Phoenix is now available with the Spektrum DX5e Tx. Flying on a sim with the same Tx that you'll use at the field is definitely the better option, but the RealFlight 'Interlink' controller is perfectly realistic (manufactured by Futaba and modelled on one of their 8 channel Tx's).
  A nice touch with the RF one is that you have control over some simulator options, such as selecting model and flying site, from the controller buttons - you don't get this with Phoenix and it's a surprising annoyance after getting used to the RealFlight Interlink convenience!
  On the Phoenix plus side though, you can calibrate and edit your transmitter settings on the sim to match the exact set-up for your own aircraft, and so what your Tx does in real life, it does on the simulator.
• Ease of use: Both about the same; very easy to get started with and both sims take you by the hand through installation and setting up. No complaints for either one and any potential complications will only arise when you want to get very technical and start seriously editing the models. Even then, the editing process for both sims is straightforward enough.
• How they run: This is obviously going to depend on the power and quality of your computer, but for me the Phoenix definitely runs smoother and less 'sticky' than the RF G4.5. It seems that the Phoenix is less 'resource hungry' than RF. The RF photo sites run smoother than the computer generated ones.
• Multiplayer abilities: Good for both. The new RF G5 improves on the G4.5 for internet interaction, with multiplayer combat flying available - sounds like fun to me! The Phoenix multiplayer option is excellent and both sims offer instant messaging capabilities between pilots.
• Training features: Both simulators offer excellent virtual training, from real-life professional radio control instructors and pilots. Everything from taking off and basic flying to advanced aerobatic and 3D maneuvers (for planes and helicopters) are covered, with full flight demonstrations and Tx stick movements shown along with a spoken narrative. Just select your lesson, watch the instructor perform it and then try it yourself!
• Fun stuff: Both Phoenix and RF have a few games and competitions to have fun with and hone your flying skills such as spot landing, limbo flying, balloon bursting and bomb dropping. RealFlight has more games to play in online multiplayer mode.
• Mac compatibility: Not being a Mac user I can't make a fair judgment on this but from what I gather, an Intel based Mac running Windows or Bootcamp will cope with either sim. Check forums for a definite answer before you buy to install on a Mac!
• Overall: in my opinion it's a tough call. Both rc flight simulators are excellent and each have their pros and cons. I think it's fair to say that the Phoenix sim is more suited to the advanced / professional rc pilot than the RealFlight 'G' series, but a complete beginner is going to do fine on the Phoenix, particularly with the Spektrum DX6i package.
  I have and use both sims - if I had to choose between them, having used both, I think the Phoenix would win. Just.

Phoenix Flight Simulator Software

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