Comparison

Holdings vs IFR Flight Trainer Simulator

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

Holdings

Practice aviation holding patterns with interactive visualizations. Covers entries, briefings, and actual holding with timing and wind corrections. Ideal for flight students and experienced pilots to maintain proficiency.

Highlights
  • Interactive holding pattern visualization
  • Practice entries with course and timing
  • Complete holding briefings
  • Actual holding practice with wind corrections
  • Altitude assignment decisions
  • Aircraft perspective and overview map
Features
Read full description

Holdings is a great way to practice holding patterns with a visualization unseen on iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch so far. Whether you are a flight student or an experienced jumbo pilot, Holdings keeps you fit for the test or to be able to double check the FMS and to stay ahead of the aircraft! Holdings takes you through all necessary steps, from the type of entry to wind and timing corrections on the actual pattern. Every step is visualized either via the aircraft’s perspective, i.e. an HSI, or a clear, intuitive overview map of the holding and aircraft position / flight path. Holdings lets you practice: ▶ Entries - Type of entry - every course, heading, wind correction angle and timing for the entry ▶ Holding Briefing - complete holding briefing including must-have items as well as additional information ▶ Actual Holding - outbound and inbound course, heading, WCA, timing - by receiving altitude assignments, you will have to decide whether to fly a 1 or 1.5 minute holding pattern Start practicing with Holdings and fly your next one completely by hand! Please note: The procedures depicted in this app may differ from those used by your airline / flight school. There is no guarantee for correct procedures.

About

IFR Flight Trainer Simulator

Practice instrument flight rules (IFR) navigation with this simulator. Learn and improve IFR procedures, including VOR, NDB, and holding patterns. Offers cockpit and map modes with adjustable wind and built-in tasks for comprehensive pilot training.

Highlights
  • Cockpit and map modes
  • VOR, NDB, DME, HSI, EHSI, RMI instruments
  • Approach procedure practice
  • Adjustable wind settings
  • Holding pattern simulation
  • Custom scenario creation
  • Built-in training tasks
Features
Read full description

Flying by instrument flight rules (IFR) is not an easy task, especially for student pilots. With the IFR Flight Trainer Simulator, students can easily develop and experienced pilots can quickly improve their understanding of IFR navigation. This is the perfect app for learning and practicing IFR procedures, and it is much cheaper than a single flight hour. Try it out if you want to acquire an instrument rating or just want to brush up your IFR skills. IFR Flight Trainer Simulator was designed with simplicity and intuitive operability in mind. The instruments available are: VOR, RMI, HSI, EHSI, DME, Directional Gyro and airspeed indicator. Thanks to a NAV 1 and a NAV 2 modes, you will also be able to train for two NDB/VOR approaches. Main features: • COCKPIT/MAP - Use the cockpit mode to practice and use the map mode to set up a scenario and check you progress. Both the aircraft and ground stations can be easily relocated to a new position by dragging and dropping them. • VOR, DME, HSI, EHSI, RMI - This aviation app is carefully designed to reflect the characteristics of different instruments. Choose between VOR or NDB navigation, select your instruments (HSI/EHSI or RMI) and a speed range up to 400 kts. • APPROACH PROCEDURES - IFR Flight Trainer Simulator will help learn how to track a radial, how to intercept a radial outbound, inbound, how to fly a DME arc, and so on. It is the simplest way to learn the navigation procedures inside out! • WIND - Have you become familiar with all the procedures? Add some wind to spice things up. The wind settings are displayed on separate screen, where you can set its direction and speed to increase the challenge. • HOLDING - Set and practice standard or non-standard holding patterns. Test you skills with VOR or NDB fix holdings. You already know where your next flight will happen? Build a scenario for it in the app to practice what awaits you in real life. This way you can practice your flight in a safe environment before facing the real challenge in the cockpit. If you want to learn the essentials, take a look at the built-in tasks as well. All features: • Use the classic or glass cockpit mode to simulate what you see in a real aircraft • Use the map mode to learn and understand the procedures from a third-person point of view • Choose between VOR and NDB navigation • Use the following, carefully designed instruments: RMI, HSI, EHSI, Directional gyro, DME, Airspeed indicator • Fly your own routes by creating challenging scenarios, using holding patterns and adjusting the wind • Test your knowledge through various built-in tasks • Drag & drop the aircraft or ground station symbols to move them around quickly • Turn the aircraft with 1.5°/s, 3°/s (standard), 6°/s and 9°/s modes, or just simply rotate the compass dial • View your flight path by enabling the aircraft track trail • Simulate winds up to 50 kts • Practice IFR flying procedures by generating random scenarios Download the app to see for yourself whether we can help you learn the essentials of IFR navigation. Try it for free and prepare at home without wasting expensive flight or simulator time.

Screenshots

Holdings4 screens
IFR Flight Trainer Simulator4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is review sentiment: IFR Flight Trainer Simulator at 82% against Holdings's 29%. IFR Flight Trainer Simulator also leads on price (Free vs $2.99) and rating (3.9 vs 2.8). Holdings's advantage is in-app purchases (none vs 2) and iOS requirement (12.0 vs 18.6). On ads and device support there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

IFR Flight Trainer Simulator is free to download; Holdings costs $2.99 up front. IFR Flight Trainer Simulator sells 2 one-off in-app purchases. Holdings asks for nothing beyond the download.

ReceptionRating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings

IFR Flight Trainer Simulator holds the better App Store score, 3.9 against 2.8. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: IFR Flight Trainer Simulator has 76 ratings behind it against 4, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews point the same way: 29% of Holdings's written reviews are positive against 82% of IFR Flight Trainer Simulator's.

UpkeepUpdate frequency

Holdings ships an update every 12 months, IFR Flight Trainer Simulator every 3 months. The most recent releases landed on October 22, 2026 and October 20, 2026 respectively.

Scorecard8 real differences · 2 level
Holdings versus IFR Flight Trainer Simulator: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterHoldingsIFR Flight Trainer Simulator
Price$2.99Free — better
Rating2.8 (4 ratings)3.9 (76 ratings) — better
Positive reviews28.6% of reviews81.5% of reviews — better
Number of ratings476 — better
Update frequencyEvery 12 monthsEvery 3 months — better
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationPaidFree with in-app purchases — better
DevicesiPhone, iPad, iPod — betteriPhone, iPad
Requires iOS12.0 — better18.6
Further details — not scored
Size3 MB155 MB
Age rating4++4
DeveloperOliver PuetzFlygo-Aviation Ltd

Customer experience

Holdings

All ratings4 ratings
Positive25.0%
Neutral25.0%
Negative50.0%
Written reviews7 reviews
Positive28.6%
Neutral14.3%
Negative57.1%

IFR Flight Trainer Simulator

All ratings76 ratings
Positive71.1%
Neutral6.6%
Negative22.4%
Written reviews130 reviews
Positive81.5%
Neutral4.6%
Negative13.8%

Bugs and requests

Holdings

Not enough reviews yet to summarise bugs or requests.

IFR Flight Trainer Simulator

Reported bugs

6 issues
  • App crashes after short usage periods
  • Heading indicator gets stuck causing continuous turning
  • HSI radials appear to be offset or incorrect
  • DME distance calculations may be inaccurate (slant range issue)
  • Task completion triggers before reaching waypoints
Show 1 more
  • OBS cannot be changed without paid upgrade

Requested features

8 requests
  • Standard rate turn simulation for realistic intercepts and holdings
  • LOC (Localizer) mode for HSI reverse sensing practice
  • Fixed-card ADF instrument option
  • Adjustable turn rate settings to match different aircraft
  • Error feedback display showing incorrect flight paths
Show 3 more
  • Bearing and course to station relative to VOR1/VOR2
  • Higher difficulty levels for advanced pilots
  • Extended free trial period for proper app evaluation

In-app purchases

None

Holdings

No in-app purchases

2 purchases

IFR Flight Trainer Simulator

One-time2
  • IFR Simulator Half Price$11.99
  • IFR Simulator Unlock$24.99

Questions

Is Holdings free?
Holdings costs $2.99, with no in-app purchases.
Is IFR Flight Trainer Simulator free?
IFR Flight Trainer Simulator is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Which has better reviews, Holdings or IFR Flight Trainer Simulator?
IFR Flight Trainer Simulator is rated higher. Holdings averages 2.8 out of 5 from 4 ratings, while IFR Flight Trainer Simulator averages 3.9 from 76 ratings.
Do Holdings or IFR Flight Trainer Simulator have ads?
Neither Holdings nor IFR Flight Trainer Simulator shows ads.
Which is updated more often, Holdings or IFR Flight Trainer Simulator?
Holdings ships an update every 12 months, and IFR Flight Trainer Simulator every 3 months. Most recently, Holdings was updated on October 22, 2026 and IFR Flight Trainer Simulator on October 20, 2026.

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