Simulator Training Flaws Tied to Airline Crashes
More than half of the 522 fatalities in U.S. airline accidents since 2000 have been linked to problems with simulators, devices that are used nearly universally to train the nation's airline pilots, the records show.

Simulator training is credited with saving thousands of lives. But the problem, according to National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) case files and safety experts, is that in rare but critical instances they can trick pilots into habits that lead to catastrophic mistakes.

Last month, the NTSB blamed deficient simulator training in part for the Dec. 20, 2008, crash of a Continental Airlines jet in Denver.

The Boeing 737-500 skidded off a runway at high speed and burst into flames because of the pilot's inability to steer while trying to take off in gusty cross-winds, the NTSB ruled. Six people suffered severe injuries.