Contracting for flight simulators has some unique problems and opportunities. Because the flight simulator design must lag the design of the aircraft, scheduling flight simulator production to coincide with the initial aircraft production is very difficult. At the same time, the government's sophstication in training effectiveness and reliability measurement offers an opportunity to greatly increase the responsiveness of industry "by allowing industry a greater role in program definition. This would be achieved by shifting the standard of contract compliance from hardware specifications to performance specifications.