You've set aside time to practice at home. What should you actually do when you open the simulator? A useful flight simulator practice plan gives you a clear answer before you start: the skill you're working on, how you'll set it up, what you'll review, and what your instructor will check in the airplane.

Use the plan below as a starting point with your CFI. You can adapt it to your lessons and available time. It isn't a certification syllabus or a promise to reduce required flight hours; it's a way to make each session more purposeful.

Whether you use MSFS, X-Plane, or Prepar3D, the planning process stays the same. Write down the platform, version, and aircraft model so you can recreate the setup. If you switch simulators, make a fresh baseline before comparing results.

Build the plan around the next lesson

Start with something from your last lesson that you'd like to handle better. Maybe you overshot a heading, lost your place during a configuration change, or stopped monitoring altitude while reading a checklist. Describe what happened as plainly as you can.

“I'm bad at multitasking” doesn't give you much to work with. “When I look for the next checklist item, my altitude starts to drift and I don't notice” does. You can build a practice session around that moment.

Before you rehearse it, ask your instructor which part makes sense to practice at home. Agree on the procedure and what a useful attempt should look like. That gives you a better target than choosing a tolerance yourself or trying to beat the simulator's score.

Build on what you learned last time

You don't have to fit this progression into a particular week. Work through it at a pace that matches your lessons and what you're learning.

Familiarization

Main purpose: Rehearse the assigned sequence slowly and resolve cockpit differences.

Evidence to bring forward: A correct explanation and a list of unresolved questions.

Focused attempts

Main purpose: Practice the difficult portion under consistent conditions.

Evidence to bring forward: The first deviation and response on each attempt.

Continuous execution

Main purpose: Perform the sequence without pauses or prompts.

Evidence to bring forward: Where the sequence holds together or breaks down.

Recall and variation

Main purpose: Try again after a break, with one agreed change.

Evidence to bring forward: Whether the behavior persists beyond a memorized setup.

If you're still unsure of the procedure, spend another session getting familiar with it. There's no benefit in moving on just because you've checked a box. When it feels reliable, ask your CFI what small variation would be useful next.

Use this practice card every time

Copy these prompts into your training notes. A few words for each is enough; the card should help you practice, not become another assignment.

• Lesson connection: What part of the next aircraft lesson does this support?
• Objective: What will I recognize or do without help?
• Reference: Which aircraft procedure, lesson brief, or instructor instruction applies?
• Setup: Which simulator, aircraft model, avionics, weather, loading, controls, and assistance settings will I use?
• Starting condition: Where and in what configuration will the attempt begin?
• Completion criteria: What did my instructor say a successful attempt should include?
• Attempt notes: What happened first, when did I notice, and what response followed?
• Next change: What single adjustment will I test?
• Transfer check: What will my instructor observe in the aircraft?

A sentence or two is usually more useful than a page you won't fill out. Include pauses, prompts, restarts, and equipment problems. Your instructor needs to know what help you had to understand the result.

Put the plan to work

Let's say your CFI has taught you how to transition from a climb to level flight. You understand the sequence, but you keep reaching the assigned altitude before starting it. Then you spend the next few moments correcting. Your home assignment can focus on noticing the approaching altitude sooner and using the sequence you were taught.

Use the same familiar aircraft model, starting altitude, and configuration for your first comparison. Fly one attempt without pausing. Notice when you realized it was time to transition and whether you followed the planned sequence.

Go back to that moment before trying again. You might test one change: saying the cue aloud when it appears. Keep the aircraft, weather, climb profile, and controls the same so you've a reasonable way to judge whether that change helped.

At the next session, test whether you can repeat the sequence without the verbal coaching you used while learning. The transfer question for the aircraft is whether you recognize and manage the transition while also handling the real cockpit workload. This example illustrates the planning method; aircraft settings and technique come from your instructor and aircraft references.

Review the plan with your instructor

After your next aircraft lesson, come back to the card. Did your instructor see the behavior you practiced? Did it hold up when the workload changed? Use that answer to decide what stays in the next plan.

A note could read: “I remembered the sequence, but still needed a prompt while handling the radio. Next home assignment: keep the same sequence and add one instructor-approved readback task.” You now have a starting point for the next session instead of having to decide all over again.

Keep your notes easy to match to your FlytWERX session evidence. Use the same date and a label that names the maneuver and the question you were working on. Future you shouldn't have to open every session to find the useful attempt.

Know when another attempt will help

Keep going while you can name something worth changing and still give it your attention. If you're repeating the same unexplained error, rushing the inputs, or fighting the equipment, stop and save the question. You don't need a better-looking score to justify ending the session.

You can also stop because you accomplished what you came to do. If you want to know whether the improvement lasts, plan to try again later rather than repeating the task until it feels automatic today.

Frequently asked questions

How many times per week should I practice?

Choose a sustainable schedule around aircraft lessons and instructor feedback. Begin with a few focused opportunities to rehearse; adjust according to what you retain and what your CFI observes.

Can I record home practice in my notes?

Yes. Label it as personal simulator practice. Whether time can count toward a formal requirement depends on the approved device and applicable conditions, not this practice card. FAA device guidance explains the approval framework.

What if the aircraft lesson changes?

Keep the useful work, then revise the next assignment. The plan should serve the training rather than force the training to follow a calendar.

Take this practice plan to your CFI and choose the first assignment together. Keep your notes alongside the available FlytWERX session evidence so the next discussion starts with what you actually tried.