Man with no experience flying planes simulates having to do an emergency landing

It turns out that playing hours of Arma 3 might be beneficial after all and could potentially help you in a real-life flying emergency.

YouTuber François Calvier, who boasts 674,000 followers on the video sharing platform, tasked himself with going into a flight simulator and trying to land an airliner despite having zero experience.

The simulator Calvier went into was of a professional standard and he had to land an Airbus A320 - a type of plane that can hold as many as 170 passengers.

An Airbus A320 can hold between 120 - 170 passengers. (Robert Alexander/Archive Photos/Getty Images)

While it was only a simulation, the cockpit looked extremely realistic as Calvier quickly learnt of the pressures that pilots face on a daily basis.

The first problem Calvier is faced with is working out how to get in touch with the air traffic control tower.

"Even though we're in a simulator it's very, very stressful," he says to the camera.

Eventually he gets through to an air traffic controller, who goes on to provide a step-by-step guide how to land the plane.

Calvier is told which buttons he needs to press to begin the plane's descent and sets its speed at 200 knots and direct the aircraft to Nice airport in France.

François Calvier received instructions from air traffic control. (François Calvier/YouTube)

After lots of back and forth with the air traffic controller (where lots of jargon was used that your average passenger wouldn't know), Calvier is told how to drop the landing gear.

Turning to chat to the camera again, the YouTuber explains: "It's going really well with the tower. [...] I'm not going to land the plane, it will land automatically, but I have to start the procedures remotely."

While he didn't have to physically land the land himself, Calvier added that there was still a lot of pressure.

While this situation wasn't real, there have been actual life or death emergencies like this when pilots have suddenly fallen unwell.

In 2022, Darren Harrison was a passenger on a flight from the Bahamas to Florida when the pilot suffered a medical emergency.

Despite having no flying experience, Harrison went into the cockpit and moved the pilot from the seat to take the reigns.

Similar to what was seen in Calvier's YouTube video, Harrison was helped via the radio from an air traffic controller who advised him on how to land the aircraft safely.

By means of a miracle, Harrison safely landed the plane at Palm Beach International Airport in a situation that could have easily ended in tragedy.