Hello friends.

Well, it's been a long time, that i wanted to write an article about blinds and visually impaired people, and working with flight simmulator... well, microsoft flight simmulator.

I've seen alot of people, searching and searching about how to work with microsoft flight simmulator.. and you've probably seen some topics here,  regarding "how to play microsoft flight simmulator 2004?" or "what softwares do i need to work with microsoft flight simmulator 2004?" and so on.

I hope that this article be useful for you, and this will be in between of the search results, which people do.

First to say, a flight simmulator, is not a game actually. you're not going to achieve a point... there's less or no challenges, and you're not going to compete with anyOne in it.
The main purpose of working/playing with microsoft flight simmulator, is to enjoy from flying, enjoy from controling the most realistic aircrafts, and working with the real instruments of an it, talking with air trafic controlers, hear the best-3d quality of roaring your engines while taking off the runway and airborn, arriving to your distination, and many many unlimited desires.
Microsoft flight simmulator is a visual simmulator. all the people around the world play or work with it, and there is no restrictions for us---blinds to work with it, too! yes... you've heard that right!
Well, the last thing about flight simmulator is, that many people hate it because of the total realism of it, and many people love that and get adicted to it again because the most reality of the aircrafts, controls, and the areas of flight simmulator.
you just need to find out that which group are you in.
If i want to write about the microsoft flight simmulator, and what feature it has, i guess the length of the post will be freakin' long. so, you'd better check the link below, without beeing worry about how to fly with MS flight sim!
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Microsoft_ … imulator_X

That link is for the ms flight sim X, the latest version of this software, so read it carefully if you want, or just go for it and search about it on the internet!

Well, now it's time to tell how we're going to fly a real aircraft without having a visual of it!

If you're thinking that all pilots, need to look out of the front window of the aircraft, to fly the aircraft, you are totally wrong.
We have two types of flights
VFR: visual flight rules... oh well, yeah the pilot needs to look outside, and work with the control yoke to turn left and right, climb and descend, and so on!

IFR: instrument flight rules... after the aircraft is airborn and in the air, the pilot do not needs to look to the sky and ground to control the aircraft. he or she, will control the aircraft by the devices, navigation tools, instruments and controls/buttons which are in front of it, on the aircraft's panels and so on!
so here we go, we just sit behind many buttons and instruments, and control our aircraft.

Unfortunetly, the aircrafts's panels and tools are not accessible by screenreaders do to their graphical interface,.
so what we're going to do?

Here comes up the gratest and best application or let's say add-on for microsoft flight simmulator, for people, specially for blind pilots!
itsyourplane

http://www.itsyourplane.com/

Here you go, you have the main link to their website of ItsYourPlane.

Now, i will just give a bit information, if you would like to listen more

Itsyourplane gives you an co-pilot... yeah, just imagine a real co-pilot, sitting beside you, and doing evrrything whenever you just command.
So, you command to your co-pilot, and she/he will do it for you.... like pressing buttons, switching nobs, pulling the stick, turning the aircraft to left and right, entering the data to your aircraft and more and more.

In my life, i have never seen a trustable application (co-pilot) such as itsyourplane (michel).
I know sighted people who close their eyes, or sit back while having tea, and trust to michel (the co pilot of itsyourplane)

Describing a super application like Itsyourplane is pretty hard. i'm not going to write a review, to advertise or just say the pros of this software, i'm just saying, what i'm experiencing.

Michel, the co pilot of itsyourplane, is able to switch, press, preform, of all actions of your aircraft. you just need to, yell out, and speak up the commands, and in the moment, your aircraft is in your control.
Some feature of itsyourplane for example, is auto landing
Landing is a hard part for all pilots, +the blind pilots really cannot do it without any assistance.
michel will do it for you. she will also assist you with other requirements of landing, huh yeah, don't think when landing, you need to just dive the airplane on the runway, and smash it to the ground.
you need to control more than 20 things of an aircraft to have an successfull landing,
like your landing gear, your flaps (a part of the aircraft's wings which is movable by controls) your airspeed, and your directions and more!
Michel, like an experienced first officer, standing beside you, will do these things for you, she will also run the checklists for you, so you don't forget anything while taking off, cruising, or descending.

Don't think that Michel will do all the things automaticly, she needs a captain, you, to command.
so you command, she preforms, and the aircraft acts.

some examples:
I say to michel "landing lights on" she will switch the landing lights, and replys "captain, the landing lights are on"
or,
"autopilot on" she will switch the button for you

"turn left, heading 150" michel will enter the data to the autopilot section of the aircraft, so your aircraft will turn left till the heading of 150 degrees.

michel will read out the runways at the airports, crew announcements, flight following reports (like where are you, what city are you crossing," and will report all the controls and things by your request, like your current airspeed, current ground speed, your total distance to your distination, and many things.

This application is verry verry complex. as i said, i'm unable to describe the all features and things in it. you just need to head to this site,
http://www.itsyourplane.com/
and read about this software yourself, and listen to the youtube videos which mr. Robert Cezar, the developer of itsyourplane recorded himself, and decide if you love it or not.
Just remember to, imagine a real co-pilot beside you, ready to take commands from you and you both fly through the skys.
mr. Cezar is currently busy, adding features more and more, evrry day and weeks for blind pilots, to ensure that they're having their aircraft under control.
As i'm aware of, he's open to suggestions, and ideas, which are coming from other blind pilots, and trying to make the itsyourplane more friendly to the blind people.

I'm not sure if you're the one who doesn't enjoy flying, or doesn't like the real simmulation of microsoft fs,
or you're like me, who loves flight verry much and is ready to do evrrything to control a real aircraft.
i want to make sure, and let all people like me to know, that even you cannot see, but you can control the aircraft such as boeing 747, and enjoy flying like other people of the world.
i have no other purpose of writing this review for you.
i hope this article would be useful to you, and i if you're going to be a captain, i hope of success flying for you.

Any questions, suggestions, ideas, post on this topic, or mail me, i'm ready to help you guys.