The First 90 Days of Being a Flight Simulator Technician

What new hires experience, and where operators get it right or wrong

Their first day inside a simulator centre rarely looks like what new technicians expect or anticipate. On paper, the role makes sense to them. Electrical systems, computers, networks, avionics, motion, visuals. For someone with a background in aviation, IT or electronics, it can feel like a natural step.

Then they walk into the simulator bay.

Lights down. Systems humming. Multiple racks of equipment. Legacy hardware sitting alongside modern computing platforms. Acronyms everywhere. Conversations that assume knowledge they do not yet have.

And one realisation sets in quickly. This is not just another technical job.

It is a system of systems, built over years, sometimes decades, where understanding how everything connects matters just as much as understanding each individual component.

The first 90 days in a role supporting these complex devices are where that understanding either begins to take shape, or starts to fall apart.

Day 1 to Day 30 - The Overwhelm Phase

Most new engineers and Flight Simulator Technician technicians do not struggle because they lack ability. They struggle because of context.

In the early days, everything feels disconnected. A fault is fixed in one place, but its impact shows up somewhere else. A simple change triggers an unexpected response. Documentation exists, but it does not always reflect what is actually running.

Common thoughts during this phase are predictable.

“What does this system actually talk to?”

“Why did that fix work?”

“How does anyone keep track of all this?”

Without guidance, new technicians and engineers often fall into one of two patterns: They either become overly cautious, afraid to touch anything without confirmation, or they start making changes without fully understanding the impact.

Neither is ideal. What they need at this stage is not deep technical detail. They need a mental map. An understanding of how the simulator is structured, how data flows, and what depends on what. Without that, everything else feels like guesswork.

Day 30 to Day 60 - The Confidence Trap

By the second month, something changes. Familiarity starts to emerge. Systems are no longer completely foreign. Certain faults begin to repeat, and fixes start to stick.

This is where confidence grows. But it's also where risk increases.

A technician who has solved a handful of problems may begin to rely on pattern recognition rather than understanding. Fixes are applied because they worked before, not because the root cause has been confirmed. This is the stage where habits form.

Good environments guide technicians to ask better questions.

• What changed?

• What is the upstream cause?

• What else could this affect?

Poor environments reward speed over understanding. Fix it quickly. Move on. Keep the simulator running. The result is often repeat faults, hidden issues and growing technical debt. The technician feels more confident, but the system becomes less stable.

Day 60 to Day 90 - The Turning Point for Flight Simulator Technician

By the third month, a clear pattern emerges. Engineers and technicians either begin to think in systems, or they remain focused on components. Those who make the shift start to connect the dots.

They understand that a visual issue might not be visual. That a motion problem might originate in timing. That an instructor complaint may point to something deeper.

They slow down slightly, but become more effective. Those who do not make this shift often continue to work reactively.

They fix what they see.

They rely on others for complex issues.

They avoid areas they do not understand.

This is the point where long term capability is shaped. And it is heavily influenced by the environment they are placed in.

Where Most Operators Get It Wrong

The biggest mistake is assuming that experience alone will fill the gaps. “Give them time” is a common approach. Time helps, but only if it is properly guided.

Without structure, new engineers and technicians build uneven knowledge. They become strong in areas they are exposed to, and weak in areas they are not. Critical systems can remain misunderstood for months or even years.

Another common issue is overloading. New hires are often exposed to everything at once. Motion systems, visual systems, networking, host computers, instructor stations. The intention is good, but the result is confusion. Without a structured progression, it becomes difficult to prioritise what matters first.

Finally, there is the reliance on key individuals. In many centres, knowledge sits with one or two experienced technicians. New hires learn by asking questions, but only when those individuals are available. This creates bottlenecks and inconsistency.

What Good Looks Like

Operators who get it right tend to do a few things differently.

They focus on building understanding before expecting performance. In the first 30 days, they prioritise system awareness. Not deep technical work, but clarity around how the simulator is structured. They introduce structured learning in manageable pieces. Rather than overwhelming new technicians, they break training into focused areas. Networking basics, visual fundamentals, motion awareness, instructor station interaction.

Each builds on the last. They pair new technicians with the right mentors. Not just the most experienced, but those who can explain clearly, remain patient and encourage questions. They create space for learning during operations. Training is not treated as separate. It is integrated into daily work. Faults become teaching moments. Maintenance tasks become guided experiences.

Most importantly, they set expectations early. Not just technical expectations, but professional ones. Attention to detail. Calm communication. Ownership of issues. Understanding that their work directly supports aviation safety.

The Link to Safety and Trust

It is easy to view the first 90 days as a simple internal process.

Onboarding, training, development, all the usual stuff. But the impact reaches further. Simulator technicians and engineers play a direct role in the quality of pilot training. That training influences real world decision making. A poorly understood system can lead to inconsistent behaviour.Inconsistent behaviour can affect training outcomes.

Good operators know that creating pressure causes negative impacts that can be felt for months or years after the fact. Good operators go about creating awareness; an environment where new hires can thrive with the right level of support.

When new technicians understand why their work matters, their approach changes. They become more deliberate. More careful, more invested. That mindset is just as important as technical skill.

Building Confidence the Right Way

Confidence is important (duh). Technicians need to feel capable of making decisions, taking action and supporting operations.

But confidence must be built on understanding, not just simple repetition. The best environments encourage technicians to explain their thinking in a way that shows they truly understand the concepts.

Why did that fault occur?

What was the root cause?

What could happen if it returns?

This shifts the focus from fixing to learning. And over time, that learning compounds. And competence compounded over time, leads to high performing teams.

A Small Window with a Big Impact

As anyone who has embarked upon this journey will tell you, 90 days is not a long lot of time. But in a simulator environment, it is enough to set direction.

Technicians who develop strong foundations early tend to progress quicker than those who don't. They become more reliable, more adaptable and more capable of handling complexity. Those who do not often take much longer to reach the same level, if they get there at all. For operators, this is an opportunity. Not just to onboard new staff, but to shape the future capability of their team.

A Final Thought

Every experienced simulator technician and engineer remembers their first few months.

The confusion. The steep learning curve. The moments where things finally started to make sense.

For many, that transition was shaped by a mentor, a well timed explanation, or an environment that encouraged learning rather than just output.

The question for operators today is simple:

Are your new engineers and technicians being set up to truly understand your simulators, or simply to keep them running?

Because in the long run, those two are not the same thing.