August 1, 2018 / admin / 2 Comments
POSCON – Positive Control Network Will Be Awesome! Yep, you heard it here first….
But let me be brutally honest. When I first learned of a planned new online flight sim multiplayer network I sort of rolled my eyes and pondered WHY? Unless you’re new to my blog postings, then you know I’ve been flying computer based sims since the 1980’s and have been a part of the flight sim community since the dawn of the Internet age and have been blogging about this hobby for well over 10 years. I’ve also been an active member of the VATSIM network since the day it was founded back in 2001. Yea…I’m nearly old as dirt, I have opinions…but I absolutely love this hobby. Much of the reason I asked “WHY” was down to the fact that I figured a third online multiplayer network would just further dilute IVAO/VATSIM, which in turn would just make all three mostly a wasteland of virtual air space. After all, contrary to popular belief, the flight sim community is rather small in comparison to other gaming communities.
What is POSCON?
POSCON or Positive Control Network is the next generation flight simulation network. The team behind POSCON are a mix of aviation professionals, hobbyists and enthusiasts who have experienced the need for an improved, modern flight sim network that supports the latest and greatest technologies.
But Why Something New?
As I previously mentioned, I too asked myself why. After all, not all change is good. Yes, I’m fully aware that both IVAO and VATSIM have their issues. While I’ve flown on both networks in the past, VATSIM is my primary network of choice and while much of their infrastructure is seriously outdated (especially their voice codec) my initial thoughts were let’s focus on fixing what we already have, before we head down the path of something new. After all, both IVAO and VATSIM were born as a result of management differences with the old SATCO network which was developed in the late 1990’s.
POSCON Is Not Just Something New
That’s right! From the outside, yea….sure….POSCON will be a new online flight sim multiplayer network. But, once you begin to peel back the layers, you’ll soon learn that POSCON is not just something new. Instead, POSCON is something DIFFERENT! Very, very, very different from what we have now.
POSCON Will Be Immersive
A total immersive experience is the absolute goal behind POSCON. The immersion factor begins well before you get into the flight deck and will end well after you’ve landed and parked at your gate/stand.
POSCON will not be just a casual flying network. Today in the VATSIM/IVAO environment, the immersion ends immediately after the flight. POSCON will include additional features to reward virtual pilots who want to achieve full immersion before, during and after each flight. POSCON will include a system behind every thing that is done on the network. The additional immersion features will ensure there’s more to your flight than just landing after diverting to another airport and logging off the network. Pilots will be rewarded for making the extra effort to submit a logbook entry just as it’s done in the real world.
POSCON Events
POSCON events will be different from what we have experienced with VATSIM/IVAO. Events will no longer be just a point A to point B only experience. Air traffic during events will depart from multiple airports within a region to other multiple airports in another regions. The overall experience during events will better simulate real world air traffic with flights arriving into large international airports, smaller regional airports and overhead cross traffic. In other words, the experience is not just about trying to land 500 planes into one airport.
AI Traffic
Don’t always have time to fly during events or when most users are logged in? Neither do I and sometimes it does get a bit lonely being the only aircraft landing/departing from our favorite airports. If flying offline, most AI Traffic packages don’t always simulate real-world operations. It bugs me to no end when I see AI aircraft landing on runways which I know are not used in the real world.
POSCON will fill the virtual skies with interactive AI. Quoted directly from the POSCON website “Imagine for a minute a network without any traffic dead zones. For pilots, this means a flight that never gets boring. For ATC, this means you can sign on at 9 AM and still work a busy sector. Our algorithms will generate traffic based on real world airline flight schedules and inject them into the live network. Controllers have the option of tracking these targets and, when they do, the AI drones will come onto the frequency and be controllable through voice. As live traffic on the network increases, the untracked AI traffic will begin to drop offline to allow for a manageable level of traffic for controllers.” Pretty cool, huh? I thought so too!
Real World Scenarios
Yea…I’m guilty of seeking out the worst weather imaginable. Whether it be a massive snow storm or hurricane force winds/rain I’m often loading up my sim, logging onto VATSIM and thinking YOLO (You Only Live Once) and flying my PMDG 737. But in the real world, airlines and pilots would never do this. POSCON may close airports in these types of scenarios and offer pilots one of two choices. Option one…divert! Option two…hold! I think that’s cool and that my friends is total immersion!
Air Traffic Controllers will also have access to real world weather conditions right in their POSCON controller client and will be able to vector traffic around strong storm cells just like real world operations.
POSCON Data Link
POSCON data link features for enhanced commercial flying will be a feature. Example, You’re flying an American Airlines 738 into Denver. You’ll receive a message via the POSCON Data Link providing you the gate assignment on arrival. The ATC controller client will also receive this same information. In the event someone spawns in and occupies that same gate, then POSCON will attempt to provide a gate change assignment. However, as is the case in the real world (flown into Heathrow lately?), pilots may experience a ground hold until gate assignment becomes available. POSCON will reward pilots for their patience and/or effort in helping to keep the immersion to a high standard. These rewards will be part of the POSCON pilot record.
In addition, communications for large events like Cross the Pond would be handled most via data link messages just as they are in the real world. At any given point in time, hundreds of aircraft are flying across the Atlantic…but very little verbal audio communications take place. It’s all done via data link messages.
POSCON Audio Quality & Communications
POSCON audio is custom and will be as clear as real world communications and at times may be as distorted as real world communications can be. Modulation simulation, HF/VHF simulation will all be simulated into the system. POSCON will also offer a voice Unicom and will be managed via the AI system and will monitor pilot behavior. The system will have the ability to take a snapshot of the pilot behavior for review by supervisors.
POSCON will not have the ability for free form text messages, but instead will include predefined messages that can be sent to the controller. While ATC in the real world is English only, POSCON will have the ability for non English language support. All predefined messages will be translated into multiple languages. A Chinese virtual pilot could send a message that he/she would view in Chinese, but other pilots/controllers would see that message in their native language or English.
What About Model Matching
One of the major bugbears with VATSIM and IVAO is model matching. Simply put, model matching means if I’m flying online and another aircraft is nearby, I want to see that other aircraft depicted in the exact type of aircraft AND livery as it should be. POSCON plans a very unique method of handling model matching where multiplayer traffic will be stored on the cloud and dynamically downloaded and injected as the user navigates online. Only the models which are needed will be downloaded, displayed and deleted as necessary. Very Cool!
What Else Can I Tell You?
POSCON is expected to be released sometime mid 2019 with early access beta possible in very early 2019. The plan is for an open beta as the POSCON Dev Team wants 100% transparency. So any and all who would like to participate will be able to participate.
You might be asking yourself, gosh Jerry this all sounds absolutely amazing…but how much will all this cost me? Great question and the answer to that question is NOTHING! POSCON will be 100% and absolutely FREE!
Final Thoughts
I doubt these will truly be my final thoughts on this subject. But for this posting and at this time, I’ve just got to say that if POSCON becomes reality…then this will truly be a thing of beauty. Of course, many are saying that POSCON will kill VATSIM and IVAO. I don’t think so. I think POSCON may prove not to be for everyone and in this case, those virtual pilots will continue to enjoy VATSIM/IVAO just as they do today.
But as I’ve said many times before, the changes I’ve seen in the flight sim hobby over the past 35+ years have truly been amazing. Whether it be the features of ground handling services of GSX (when working properly), the injection of real world weather from ActiveSky, the icing effects and bug splatter on the FSLabs A319 and hopefully all the goodness I’ve just been blabbering about from POSCON. When I think back to what things were like in the early 1980’s on my Commodore 64 to what they are now…God it’s truly a great time to be alive.
Want to learn more? Yes, I’ve covered a lot and I think I’ve just about covered everything publically available today with regards to POSCON, but should you want to know more or just want to check out the POSCON website, then please do so. I’ll certainly provide more details as it becomes available and I truly look forward to the open beta and the general release of what is shaping up to be a very cool addition to our already amazing hobby.
Until next time…
Happy Flying!!!
Jerry
June 10, 2018 / admin / 0 Comments
Last night a bit of history was made and I was fortunate enough to have been a part of it. As I’ve mentioned a few times, I’ve been flying on the VATSIM network from its inception, and even briefly before when it was known as SATCO. I’ve participated in many events around the world and just about each and every one of those events left a lasting impression on me. I remember my first CTP or Cross the Pond and the 9/11 remembrance events are always very special. But Friday night I experienced something which out of my 18 year history with VATSIM was an absolute first and honestly I almost missed out on it.
Earlier in the week I had been researching some of the scheduled events taking place at FSExpo18. I recently blogged about this event which is taking place this weekend. I somewhat stumbled onto the VATSIM FNO event (Friday Night Operations) and when I read about it, I knew I had to make every effort to participate. However, the timing couldn’t have been worse. I’ve been extremely busy at work the past few weeks, I’m leaving today (writing this on the plane) for SFO for work, my parents arrive on Thursday and I’m once again traveling the week of the 25th. So much going on, but I so wanted to participate. While I don’t need to ask permission from my wife to really do anything, I explained to her about the event and said I’ll get everything done I needed to do, work right up to the time I need to leave for the airport on Sunday. She agreed that this event would be special. WOW…I have a fantastic wife.
The Event
VATSIM has held, what they’ve historically called “Light up America” events in the past. The goal is to attempt to staff as many air traffic control positions as possible. Keep in mind this is all volunteer effort. While most everyone enjoys the online flying part, we need folks who equally enjoy serving as ATC or Air Traffic Controllers to make it “As Real As It Gets”. This event had the exact same goals and VATSIM was taking it up a notch by hosting it Live from the Flamingo Hotel in Las Vegas during FSExpo18.
Again, I’ve been flying off and on on the VATSIM network since it was born over 18 years ago. I recall participating in other “Light up America” events, but I don’t recall it being as successful as Friday nights event actually was. This is not to say it never has been, I just don’t recall it and never had the opportunity to participate in any such event.
Return to Twitch
OK…I need to just say one thing. In a few days you’re going to see a blog posting which is a response to an email I received a few days ago from a long-time (somewhat long lost) flight sim friend. He wrote me after seeing newly published content on my blog site about flight sim. In a nutshell, he’s asking me if I had any plans to livestream my flights on Twitch as I once did before I started up my YouTube channel. I replied to me privately, and asked him if he would mind me turning his email, my response and other thoughts into a blog posting for future release. He thought that was a great idea and I had been working on writing that up for release in a few weeks. However, as I began to plan my flight for the VATSIM event, I thought to myself it might be a good event for me to stream on Twitch. So I did and here we are…
Rusty, Rusty, Rusty
It’s been over three years since I had broadcast my flying on Twitch. Back then, I would make every effort to fly to/from airports with ATC coverage…but what I really enjoy most about livestreaming is interacting with my viewers. Unfortunately in an event of this scale, there is so much ATC chatter that it really makes it hard….plus I’m a bit rusty with some of my VATSIM procedures (especially when flying in a controlled airspace) that juggling a three ring circus (ring one my aircraft, ring two VATSIM ATC and ring three my Twitch viewers) could easily become overwhelming. But surprisingly I think I did OK and really only got my wrist slapped by ATC one time and that was my failure to STOP my taxi at SFO after I had vacated 28R, was given permission to cross 28L by SFO Tower, but I was handed off to SFO Ground a bit late (i think) and I unfortunately was changing frequencies and still moving. But all is OK…and I’ve learned a lesson which I won’t forget.
Thank you VATSIM
As you can see from the screenshot I captured from VAT-Spy during the event, America was certainly lit up with ATC. It’s not every day a pilot can depart on the east coast of the US and fly all the way across the country and be within ATC control the entire time. For my flight, I opted to recreate the flight I’m currently on (Denver to San Francisco) with Southwest Airlines.
I must also say, that while I enjoy VATSIM events. Most are situated around a single airport or a single ARTCC region. This places a lot of traffic all attempting to land/takeoff within a small airspace. I would love to see VATSIM organize more events similar to Light up the USA. But I’m also aware it’s all volunteer effort and I really have no idea the amount of work it took to pull off this type of an event. A possible solution might be to divide the US half (along the Mississippi River) and have eastern and western focused events alternate in similar fashion to the Light up the USA event.
Thank you Viewers
As PBS says, “It’s Viewers Like You” and it really is. I appreciate those who turned out to watch my flight. I realize most of my YouTube subscribers are mainly Farm Sim fans, but I do have a mix of fans who enjoy all things simulation and hopefully everyone enjoyed themselves. I know I certainly did and I’m really glad I had the opportunity to experience this event, glad I had the opportunity to share it with others and very much look forward to more, more, more.
I need to close for now and I’m going to see if I can upload this via my onboard wi-fi connection. Look for another installment of the GBS WorldFlight Tour later this week and perhaps another edition on Saturday. Sometime I’ll also schedule and release the letter I mentioned earlier which again I wrote not really knowing I would be streaming the flight.
Until next time….
Happy Simming!
Jerry
July 8, 2017 / admin / 0 Comments
Just for clarification, my blog articles are geared towards the new flight sim enthusiast. 2017 is “The Year of Flight Simulation”. With new and updated flight sim platforms from Lockheed Martin (Prepar3d v4), Laminar Research (X-Plane 11) and the new kid on the block Dovetail Games (Flight Sim World)…a lot of hype (very good hype) has been focused on our wonderful hobby. If you build it, they will come…is just as fitting on the flight sim scene today as it was years ago in that Iowa cornfield.
Today’s “How To” article is designed to help the new virtual pilot understand the differences of VFR and IFR flight rules as they relate to the flight simulation hobby. But before we get started and to satisfy the attorneys….allow me to post the fine print.
Fine Print: Unfortunately I feel the need to state for the record that my “How To” articles and tips are for flight simulation purposes only and should not be used for real world aviation.
Now that we have the legal stuff out of the way…let’s get started!
The Flight Rules
There are two sets of rules for flying and operating aircraft. VFR and IFR. The choice between these two sets of rules is generally determined based on weather conditions. However, other factors may come into play such as flight operations, type of aircraft and terrain/border considerations. But before we dive into these specific sets of circumstances, let’s clear the air on exactly what VFR and IFR means. Let’s start with IFR first.
IFR
IFR stands for Instrument Flight Rules and is a set of rules that govern aircraft which fly in what is considered Instrument Meteorological Conditions (IMC). IMC, in general terms, just means flying in the clouds. More to the point, IMC weather conditions are defined as weather that is below the prescribed minimums for VFR flights.
Essentially, under IFR flight or IFR flight conditions, the pilot or pilots will operate and fly the aircraft by instruments without any outside visual guidance. In the real world, pilots who wish to fly IFR are required to possess an instrument rating and required to undergo additional training.
VFR
VFR stands for Visual Flight Rules. Just as the name implies, VFR flight rules require the aircraft must, at all times be clear of any weather situations which would prevent the pilot from maintaining visual separation with other aircraft, terrain, obstacles etc. While some VFR flights may be under radar coverage by ATC, under VFR the responsibility for traffic separation lies solely with the pilot in command.
Other Considerations
While weather certainly plays a crucial part in determining whether one flies VFR or IFR, also the type of aircraft, the type of flight operations being conducted and also general terrain and border considerations must be factored in. Of course, the other really important factor is pilot rating/certifications. However, pilot rating/certifications are not applicable in the virtual flying environment.
Simply put, unless the pilot holds an instrument rating…if weather conditions are not VFR (meaning they are classified as IMC as discussed above) then the aircraft and the pilot will remain firmly in place on the ground.
The type of aircraft also carries an important factor in the decision. Something like a J-3 Cub with no lights and no radios will remain grounded under non-VFR conditions. At a minimum, (along with pilot certification) any aircraft filing for IFR flight must have two-way radio communication capabilities, a transponder and navigation equipment.
Any sort of scheduled passenger flight operations will require an IFR flight plan to be filed and the pilot/aircraft must fly under IFR flight rules at all times. The exception to this rule might include certain charter operators, but for insurance purposes even these may be required to always operate IFR. Obviously all large jet aircraft will generally file and operate IFR.
Finally, depending on terrain and altitude restrictions, these type of flights might be IFR type. Also, crossing of international borders will also most likely require an IFR flight plan.
Fine Print: Unfortunately I feel the need to state for the record that my “How To” articles and tips are for flight simulation purposes only and should not be used for real world aviation.
Again, while much of what I’ve discussed above comes directly from real-world aviation rules/guidelines, I just want to remind readers this information is not geared towards real world aviation.
Virtual Flying – IFR or VFR? What is most common?
In the virtual world, and specifically speaking about the virtual multi-player networks of VATSIM and IVAO, the most common type of flight operations are IFR. While both networks welcome and encourage VFR flying, the most common will be IFR.
Even yours truly, got started on VATSIM flying IFR and of the almost 2000 hours I’ve logged flying on the VATSIM network, I’d guess that 95% of those hours will be under IFR. As someone with over 17 years of VATSIM experience, if there is any regret I have today, it’s that I didn’t do more VFR General Aviation type of flying on the network to gain a better understanding of the key functional differences between the two.
What’s Next?
This really is only scratching the surface and this article is really only providing the explanation and differences between IFR and VFR flight. In a future set of articles I’ll provide more clarification specific to IFR and VFR flying as it relates to virtual flying on the various online, multiplayer networks.
Until next time…happy flying!
Jerry
Fine Print: Unfortunately I feel the need to state for the record that my “How To” articles and tips are for flight simulation purposes only and should not be used for real world aviation.
July 8, 2011 / admin / 0 Comments
This was the question asked of me after I landed my iFly B737NG (FSX version) on 16L at KDEN the other night.
It was a dark and stormy night….no really, it was both dark and somewhat stormy with lightning flashes to the west of KDEN. I had departed KDFW for a 2 hour flight on the VATSIM network. I’ve probably logged over 60 hours in the iFly 737, but that isn’t the subject of this blog posting.
I truly love flying on the VATSIM network. I know there are those who don’t like it because of the sparse ATC controllers typically online. Of course, with the various traffic programs available like MyTrafficX and Ultimate Traffic 2, you can turn an international airport into a hustling and bustling airport with just a few mouse clicks. However, you won’t hear and get the awesome “atta boy” comments that I received the other night from the FSX default ATC. More about this in a minute.
True, I’ve been known to nail some real greasers on landing. This is especially true when I’m in a bit of a hurry and not doing everything by the book. This happens more in the default aircraft since you don’t have the dynamic flight systems of the payware models like the iFly or the LVLD. But it can also happen in these payware models I just mentioned when you cut corners. But I digress and for that I’m sorry.
I had departed KDFW with no ATC online, but really wanted to enjoy this flight up to my now home town of Denver, Colorado. This is one of my favorite flights for many reasons and only second to flying down to St. Maarten and TNCM out of KMIA. I just love the approach over the beach and hope to visit St. Maarten in real life someday. The flight to Denver was as uneventful as it can get. While Ft. Worth Center was not online, I did pickup Kansas City Center and Denver Center. Denver center was the only ATC on and he controlled me all the way down.
I typically do things just about the same way each and every flight I make. I check the weather conditions either via FSInn or direct from the NOAA METAR database. And in the case of Denver Center, he had an updated published ATIS which I pulled down well before entering his airspace and I acknowledged I had information Bravo when I initially checked in with him.
I don’t think a lot of pilots really bother picking up or at least confirming they have the current information even though that is depicted well within the default FSX ATC. Even if you don’t bother tuning into the ATIS frequency for the airport you are going to land, there are other ways of getting the info and it certainly helps the ATC guys for you to be that much more prepared. Anyway….Information Bravo was telling me that KDEN was landing and departing to the East. Landing runway 7 and departing runway 8. So I pulled my charts for runway 7 and just quickly familiarized myself with the approach.
As I was inbound on the Quail Six Arrival and roughly 50nm from KDEN, Denver Center updated the ATIS with updated information. I quickly listened to the update and realized KDEN was now going to be in South Ops and made the adjustments necessary to plan for a runway 16L approach.
Approaching KDEN from the South, the Quail Six arrival brings you just south of the airfield and makes for an easy transition when KDEN is under North Ops with easy access to runway 35L. However, KDEN was not in North Ops and this would mean flying downwind to the east of the field for vectors to 16L.
Now back to the dark and stormy night comment. Weather conditions in the area was a typical summer evening in the mile high city with storm cells erupting out on the eastern plains. A few of these cells had moved in closer to the city and both myself and my virtual PAX were treated to a nice light show of cloud to cloud and cloud to ground lightning strikes. The combination of ActiveSky X and Real Environment Extreme make for some truly impressive eye candy at times and this particular night was no different.
As I completed the roll-out from the vectors given by Denver Center, KDEN airport and runway 16L was in clear visibility so a visual landing was certainly in order for the evening. Along with FS2Crew (the iFly version) my FO and I readied the beautiful Boeing 737-800 for her landing and had a smooth landing with no complaints from the virtual PAX. As I turned the B738 onto the high-speed taxiway and gave the “OK to Clean-up” order to the FO I received a private message from the VATSIM ATC Controller simply asking me “Are you a real pilot”?
Now if you’ve read my recent blog post where I state I’m not a real pilot, you would know (or will know if you kindly read it) that I’m not a real pilot. But of course the gentleman working VATSIM ATC doesn’t know I routinely blog about my flight sim hobby. But I answered him by saying Negative….why do you ask? His response simply was “you do a very good job”.
I have no VATSIM ATC experience. I also have no desire to gain any other than from a pilots perspective. So I’m not 100% certain what the VATSIM controllers really can see and what they really can’t see. I’ve been told by several VATSIM controllers that I know very well, that what they can see is very limited. They of course can tell if you turn the wrong direction and they can also tell if you land on the wrong runway. But they can’t really tell how hard or how soft of a landing a virtual pilot makes.
So what is so special about his comments and why blog about them? This is a very good question and the reason why I chose to blog about it was to one, share the experience and two to turn it into a learning experience for all. As I stated in the opening paragraphs of this blog post, I’ve truly experienced some real greaser landings. I call those controlled crashes. While I’ve never mistaken a taxi-way for an active runway, I’ve certainly had my share of off center touchdowns and some of those where you hit just before the touchdown zone and some where you hit well past it. This flight and this landing was textbook and the comments from the VATSIM ATC Controller sort of showed me that it is worth doing everything somewhat by the book. Of course, having over 25 years of computer sim experience doesn’t hurt.
In closing, You’ll never hear me make claims that I could fly a real plane….but I think my virtual PAX can rest easily knowing I at least know how to operate my iFly 737NG to get positive feedback from VATSIM ATC. I hope you too will take your virtual flight simulation to the next level and work harder to improve your skills. One day a VATSIM ATC controller might ask you, “Are you a Real Pilot”?
Until next time….
Jerry
June 21, 2011 / admin / 0 Comments
I saw this question mentioned on the VATSIM Forums the other day and it got me thinking. Is the VA model still alive? Being someone who has been involved with virtual airlines off and on for a decade now, I sort of began pondering why I joined a VA in the first place and why I re-joined my old VA when coming back into the hobby last year and why I spend many hours a month running the Dallas/Ft. Worth Hub for American virtual Airlines. By the way, American virtual Airlines just recently celebrated its 10th birthday. I think this very point is the answer to the overall question. But we’ll dig a little deeper and see what we find.
First of all….what is a VA? A VA or Virtual Airline (according to Wikipedia) is a dedicated hobby organization that uses flight simulation to model the operations of an airline. VA’s date back to time before the “big bang” of the Internet. VA’s are reported to have been found on services such as Prodigy, CompuServe and AOL. But I think they could have easily existed before that time…before the time of the Internet age and those previously mentioned online services. VA’s could have (and probably did) existed between neighborhood friends who manually tracked their time with a Big Chief tablet and a #2 pencil. I will admit that when flight simulator expanded into the ability to fly to a few more places than just around Meig’s Field, I was tracking my flights and counting up the hours I spent doing so. Was I in a VA? I suppose I could have been with MMI Airlines (Me, Myself & I).
I learned about the virtual airline concept one of two ways (I can’t remember for certain, it’s what happens as you get older). Either I saw something on one of the older versions of Microsoft Flight Simulator or I read about it in one of the Flight Sim Magazines. This was in the early 2001 timeframe. At that time the apartment where I lived didn’t live close enough to the Telco central office to receive DSL and I was still on dialup. Anyway, the concept interested me and I joined several which either were inactive or closed their doors. In the late summer of 2001 I found AvA.
Back in this 2001 timeframe, I don’t remember all the various communities to support the hobby. Sure there were forums, but today there exists various online communities where members come together to share knowledge, swap lies, post screenshots and learn about the hobby. One of the finest that I know of and proud to call myself a member is The Flight Simulator Network. This website was founded by a fellow flight sim enthusiast, Mark Avey and in my opinion is one of the best on the internet. These communities provide an alternative to the traditional based VA. Some of these communities have a built-in VA component and some do not. I understand that The Flight Simulator Network now offers a virtual airline within their website.
Back to the specific topic of Virtual Airlines and if they matter today. The general problems with most VA’s today can be lumped into a couple of categories. The first being lack of experience, the second being lack of funds and possibly a third is lack of maturity. Take out these key ingredients and a VA will fail to get off the ground. Please allow me to drill into each of these issues.
I want to start with lack of maturity first. This doesn’t automatically mean the individual starting the VA is a young person. It simply means the individual wants to be the CEO of his/her own VA and generally this has been decided because they find fault with an already existing VA or its members.
Lack of experience is also a HUGE issue with the success or failure of a VA. Individuals will form a VA without any prior knowledge of how a VA should run.
The third element is lack of funds. Any VA website created on a free web service will more than likely fail. This may not have been the case a decade ago, but today….it will fail…..guaranteed. Virtual Pilots demand certain functionality which can be difficult to provide on free web services. Second, most free web services have various pop-up ads that again just aren’t tolerated in this modern Internet age we live in. One could expect to pay anywhere from $100 up on an annual basis to run a successful virtual airline and in most cases you can’t count on members to donate anything towards the cost.
There is a final element or issue that does plague VA’s today and that is legal issues. Most VA’s that portray the operations of a real world counterpart (such as American Airlines, Southwest Airlines, Fedex etc. etc.) are doing so somewhat under the radar. While I won’t say that the real American Airlines doesn’t know about AvA, it is just possible they have not bothered with trying to shut it down. Many upstart VA’s could expect to receive a “cease and desist” letter from the real world airline they are trying to portray. Some airlines are more diligent than others. I think a lot of the reasons why VA’s get shut down by their real world counterparts can fall into the other three elements I previously mentioned. Some VA’s have been extremely successful at reaching out to their real-world counterpart and not only gaining approval for using copy write material, but also gaining the full support (non-financial) and endorsement. One of the most successful stories that I know of is British Airways Virtual. These guys presented their ideas for BAV to the real BA legal and marketing teams and won their full support. That is incredible.
But aside from all that, is the VA model still alive today? I say YES, it is. I’m not just saying this because of my involvement with a VA, I’m saying this from what I experience reading in the various online forums and communities and what I witness each and every time I fly on the VATSIM network. I see this is the dedication of the virtual pilots who fly for me in the DFW hub.
If you are reading this and you currently are not involved with a virtual airline, I say join one. Don’t create a new one just because you want to be the CEO. Trust me, you’ll regret that decision down the road. But join an existing VA and experience it from the pilots viewpoint. If you haven’t experienced a virtual airline from a pilots perspective, how on earth can you be a successful CEO?
But what virtual airline should you join? Well…this is not as hard as it may seem. Most of us that are truly addicted to the flight simulation hobby will have a favorite airline they enjoy flying in the real life. It may be American, it may be United or Southwest or it might even be Era Alaska as portrayed on the Discovery Channel TV program, seek out and find these VA’s and join up. You’ll easily be able to tell from their website if they are active or defunct. Look for VA’s which have an online policy manual and read this before joining. Look for VA’s which provide automated PIREP systems.
I would welcome anyone reading this blog post to join me at American virtual Airlines. If you like the real world AA, AvA is the best VA out there simulating AA operations. We’ve been around for 10 years and have an active and very experienced management team running every aspect of the VA.
Again, the VA model is very much alive and kicking. Consider joining one to take your flight sim hobby to the next level. I think you’ll enjoy it.
Until next time,
Jerry
June 4, 2011 / admin / 0 Comments
American virtual Airlines was founded on June 1, 2001. Each year AvA has celebrated its birthday with an event of some kind. I remember the early days when we might get 25 pilots or so that would fly in the event. Normally the event consisted of a group flight from point A to point B. As I’ve previously discussed, real life events got in the way of my flight sim and virtual aviation hobby and I had to step away for about 5 years. I re-joined AvA in November of 2010 and quickly worked my way back up to DFW hub manager. You can read more about this here and here.
Shortly after I re-joined I began hearing about the plans for the 10th birthday celebration. To say I was excited would be an understatement. After all, this is almost unheard of in the flight sim community. VA’s come and go…mostly go. If you look in the VATSIM forums under the VA News category, you’ll see at least one new VA announce they are opening their doors on a weekly basis. Some weeks more. If these new VA’s survive their first 3 months they are lucky. Survive their first year and I’d call them double lucky.
As I said, VA’s come and go. For the most part someone will start a VA just because they want to run their own VA. While I have no scientific proof, I would say most new startups are done by younger members of the hobby. There is nothing wrong with this….but there are several key ingredients to starting, running and maintaining a successful VA and most either do not know, understand or care to use these ingredients. But I digress….
The AvA 10th birthday also marks an anniversary of mine as well. Prior to joining AvA I really didn’t consider flight simulation a hobby. It was a game that I played on a computer with a joystick. I would play the game by departing from an airport and flying around. Sometimes I would fly from one airport to another…It really had no purpose. Joining AvA gave me purpose as far as logging PIREPs and gaining a much better understanding of real world policies and procedures. It also marks my anniversary with flying online via VATSIM.
As the event planning began just after the first of the year, it was determined that each respective AvA hub would fly from their hub to DFW as DFW is the headquarters for American Airlines in real life, it is also the HQ for AvA in the virtual world.
As the year progressed I moved from being just a pilot at DFW to the training hub manager then the hub manager position opened up at DFW. This was something I really wanted and I’m very honored and humbled that I was given the opportunity to once again manage this fine hub for AvA. With the event taking place with all hubs flying into DFW, I’m especially honored to get to show the DFW hub off to all of AvA.
I wanted to do something special to commemorate my 10th anniversary as well as that of AvA’s. This is why I arranged to spend all day on Saturday flying. I cleared it with my very supporting wife, made sure to bring her flowers and cooked her dinner. Plus I got the chores and other tasks out of the way that I normally do on Saturday out of the way. The day was set and the calendar was cleared.
My day of flying was planned to look like this. I would fly from KDEN to KDFW, then KDFW to KTPA. Since the AvA hubs are flying into DFW, DFW pilots had a choice to fly from either TPA or SJU. I chose to fly from TPA and join up with the training hub guys who are based out of TPA. I would then fly TPA to DFW in the large group celebration event. Did I mention this event is BIG? We have over 115 AvA members signed up with invitations going out to all of the flight sim community.
I set my alarm (which I rarely do on a Saturday) so I could make sure to be up for my first flight. Since I pretty much always fly from my last arrival location, I was coming from Denver to Dallas. The only problem I had was I actually woke up about two hours before my alarm was set to go off. After about 10 minutes of not being able to fall asleep again, I said…I know…I’ll fly from DEN to ORD then ORD down to DFW then resume my regular flight schedule. Plus this will add one more flight to my schedule for the day. Life is good!
If you fly online and especially during heavy VATSIM event times, you know things can get a bit hectic. The DFW hub was scheduled to depart from Tampa (KTPA) and as the departure time approached we had no ATC online. We began systematically departing based on our scheduled time and that worked out great. I pushed and started on schedule and was approaching runway 01L when Tampa Approach popped online. This caused a slight kink in the chain as I needed to get clearance and there were about 3-4 aircraft lined up behind me. Once I got my clearance, I was cleared to take-off.
This event is the largest online event I’ve participated with the new computer I built last September. I experienced a slight lag on the ground at Tampa. I’m running the FlyTampa scenery for FSX and I estimate there was about 20 aircraft on the ground and we were all within a 100 yards of each other. I think all in all the machine held up well. Time will tell how the machine handles the approach and arrival into DFW. I expect many more aircraft on the ground and in the airspace than what was experienced in Tampa.
As reflected in the photo, this is what the VATSIM skies looked like about 2100z. The photo is a screenshot of VAT-Spy. VAT-Spy allows virtual pilots to see other aircraft an air traffic control who are logged into the VATSIM network. If you look at the image, you’ll see AAL100 in the southeast corner of the Memphis ARTCC airspace that is me flying in the iFly 737NGX. Also, all the orange colored aircraft labels are AvA Pilots. We had a heavy concentration of pilots departing from TPA, MIA and SJU (San Juan). But all hubs are represented with BOS, JFK, ORD and LAX.
As all aircraft began approaching the airspace around Dallas/Ft. Worth things changed from calm to organized chaos but in a good way. What I mean by this is this is about the only way that we can simulate what real world conditions look like and act like in and around a major airport. The standalone FSX ATC won’t do it and I’m not aware of any software add-on package that will do this and do it like its done in the real world with true human like involvement. We had exceptional air traffic control from the top down. And while we still had a few minor pilot errors, as far as I could tell everyone had fun.
Once the majority of the aircraft landed, we held an induction ceremony to welcome a few new members to our AvA Admiral’s Club. Our Admiral’s Club is reserved for members who perform above and beyond the call of duty. Most have been in the VA for more than 3-5 years and have flown over 1000 hours exclusively for AvA.
Of course, what is one to do after having such a great day of flying the friendly VATSIM skies and participating in an event with over 80 other AvA members? Yep, you guessed it. Saddle up the iFly 737NGX and head west to Vegas Baby! Yep…about a dozen departed DFW for LAS to continue the after the party party. This 5th flight for the day caps off a great almost 12 hours of flying and 10 awesome years for American virtual Airlines. Happy Birthday AvA!
Until next time….
Jerry
May 13, 2011 / admin / 0 Comments
I blog about the flight simulation hobby for many reasons. Mainly to share my enjoyment of the hobby, but also to share knowledge with others. While I don’t claim to know everything about the hobby and if you’ve read some of my blog postings you know I’m also learning or sometimes re-learning along the way. Bottom line is I’m loving my re-entry back into the hobby and love sharing my experiences with all of you who read this.
As I shared waaaaaaaay back in blog post #1, I’ve been flying computer sims since the early to mid 80’s. I started on the Commodore 64 with just the computer, software and a joystick. The Commodore 64 version of Flight Simulator was rather crude in comparison to FSX today, but it was certainly in-line with the video games of the era. By the way, yes I had the original Pong.
As time has passed from those days of the C-64 and flying around Meig’s Field, the versions of Flight Simulator have truly become “As Real As It Gets” and while I have no direct experience with X-Plane, I know many fellow enthusiasts who swear by it and there is certainly room for two major developers of software to support the hobby.
While the concept of freeware,shareware and open-source has been around for many years (even as far back as the C-64 days), in this hobby we’ve really only seen that in terms of add-on scenery, aircraft etc. As far as I know the first true open-source flight simulator software package didn’t show up until around 1996 when FlightGear.org developed and released their version of a flight simulator. Since 1996, FlightGear.org has offered their software (frequently updated) absolutely free.
In recent months a new flight simulator package has been advertised throughout the flight sim community, on Twitter and even Facebook titled Flight Pro Sim or ProFlight Simulator (perhaps other names as well). I’ll get back to this in just a minute.
With exception to Microsoft FSX, my GoFlight hardware and a few other software add-ons just about everything else I use (including most of my aircraft fleet) is freeware or shareware. Yes I do own a lot of scenery packages which I have purchased (I don’t support software piracy) but again most of my aircraft (especially the big iron) are all freeware/shareware models. I routinely fly several POSKY models and before the breakup of POSKY, I did occasionally donate a few dollars here and there to help offset their web hosting expenses.
Software piracy is a big deal not only in the flight sim community, but all over the software industry. In my opinion, knowingly downloading and installing pirated software is just as bad as walking into your neighbors house and taking something of equal value. It is stealing….there is no other way to say it.
Now back to ProFlight Simulator. If you frequent Facebook or follow some flight simulator enthusiasts on Twitter, you may have seen the ads for this software. Hopefully you have also read the warnings from others about avoiding this software. But why?
First of all, it is widely believed that the ProFlight Simulator software being sold for anywhere from $49.00 up to $89.00 is just a re-branded version of the absolutely free FlightGear software. Remember, I told you a few minutes ago that FlightGear.org has offered their open-source software free since 1996. Now…just don’t take my word for it. Read the information here direct from FlightGear on how they believe this is their software, just re-branded.
I’m not a lawyer, I don’t play one on TV and I didn’t sleep in a Holiday Inn Hotel last night (inside joke on a TV commercial that airs in the US), but according to the guys at FlightGear, what ProFlight Simulator did is not illegal….just unethical. In my mind this just infuriates me even more.
Again, while I touched on the issues this hobby and community faces with regards to software piracy, what ProFlight Simulator has done really doesn’t fall into that category and I’m not making a direct comparison to that issue. The issue is ethics…plain and simple and yes people are getting hurt in the process.
First, any consumer who purchases or has already purchased ProFlight Simulator for any price has been hurt and mislead. The reason is because it is widely believed the software ProFlight Simulator is selling is merely a re-branded version of FlightGear which is and always has been available for Free.
Second, the folks over at FlightGear who from day one have worked hard to develop and provide to the community an open-source flight simulator software program for free have been hurt by this.
Third, while I’ve never installed or used FlightGear (and perhaps many of you never have either), but the entire Flight Sim Community has been hurt by this. The reason is because this selfish action of ProFlight Simulator could cause others who want to develop freeware, shareware and open-source software for the benefit of all of us to re-think their plan.
So what do you think? Honest or Rip Off? Well….only you can decide for yourself. If you are looking at getting into the hobby then please do your homework. While I’ve not researched what either of these software packages can fully do, I don’t think they are supported to the extent of Microsoft Flight Simulator or X-Plane when it comes to the various add-ons available and for example VATSIM. My advice in this case is to read the info available from all software packages and make your own decision on what is best for you.
In closing, the purpose of this blog post is to just help get the information out there. This is not a new issue as again I say this topic has been blogged about by many. But if just one person learns the truth from reading this blog post then it has been worth the effort to put the information out there for all to read.
Finally, you’ll notice I did not provide the direct link to the ProFlight Simulator website. Since this is my blog I can decide what I want linking from it. In my own mind I believe what ProFlight Simulator has done is unethical, misleading and hurtful. If you want to visit their website…Google is your friend.
In the spirit of Hill Street Blues….
Jerry
May 12, 2011 / admin / 0 Comments
While Flight Simulation is the only hobby I discuss on this blog, it is not the only hobby I enjoy. As discussed in the blog posting titled “The Cost of a Hobby”, I do enjoy photography, golf (although my game is suffering right now) and amateur radio (also known as ham radio). It is a lesson from amateur radio that I plan to share with you today.
I returned to the world of VATSIM last November and estimate over 90% of my current flight simulation time is spent flying online. I also had a “full-circle” moment and re-joined with my old virtual airline, American virtual Airlines. In another “full-circle” moment, I’m now managing the Dallas/Ft. Worth Hub for AvA (which I did back in the 2001-2004 timeframe) and am truly having a ball.
For those who have never experienced the fun of flying on VATSIM, you should check it out. Yea I know all the reasons some people have. Let’s see. ONE The software is too complicated to install. TWO The procedures are too difficult to master. THREE There is never any ATC online at the time I want to fly.
OK…So number three is a valid point. There are times (OK…a lot of times) where ATC coverage is not available. But there are also times when there is and when there is….it truly is As Real As It Gets. But this blog post is not about that and unless you regularly fly on VATSIM then it probably won’t apply. But I hope you’ll keep reading.
When I previously flew on the VATSIM network (back in 2001 – 2004 or so) I didn’t have my ham radio license. In 2007 I did earn my license and upgraded to the second level (general class) in early 2008. I’ve been off and on studying for the top tier, (extra class) for several years. One very key element that all beginning ham radio operators learn about is the art of listening.
Now we’ve all been (regardless if you are a fellow ham) taught this lost art. More than likely it was taught to us at a very young age by our parents and certainly was taught during Kindergarten. After all, everything we need to know in life was taught to us during our year of Kindergarten The problem is we tend to forget and most of us have simply forgotten the art of listening.
Back to the hobby of amateur radio. We are taught again about the importance of listening. Part of the material we read and study to earn our entry level license (called technician class) tells us we will do more listening than actually speaking when operating our radios. The guidance when tuning into a frequency is to listen………..listen some more…………listen yet some more……….no we’re not done listening just yet……..after some time we don’t hear anything….then we listen a little more and finally will politely ask if the frequency is in use and yes……LISTEN.
We do this because it is possible I may not hear another ham operator using that particular frequency and my transmission could interfere with his or another operators ability to hear and use that frequency. After I listen for a minute or two and politely ask if the frequency is in use, if I then do not hear anyone…I’m free to go ahead and begin using that frequency.
Of course in VATSIM we do not need to ask if the frequency is in use. This was merely an example of how the art of listening is applied in the hobby of amateur radio. But the key take away that I’m trying to make with this blog post is even in the world of simulated ATC on VATSIM, we all need to LISTEN more than we speak.
Many, Many, Many times fellow pilots will “step over” another pilot or ATC simply because they are not listening. Other times pilots need to ask again for ATC to repeat what they said again because they are not listening. I know some will argue that what is happening is not because of the lack of listening…but I think many and actually most cases it is.
My first piece of advice for virtual pilots is to invest in a good set of headphones. Preferably USB so you can set Squawkbox or FSInn to only send the ATC audio into the headset and keep the sound of the flight sim (the airplane) out of the headset. I know I also flew for many years with the sound of my aircraft mixed in with the ATC audio. It’s not like this on a real airplane….so make the change. You’ll thank me later.
Second, (and this ties in with the above) route your aircraft sounds into some external speakers and keep the audio turned down low enough so when you speak into your headset only your voice is transmitted and not the sounds of your engines etc. This will help everyone hear and understand you better.
Third, if you use an external microphone….read my first piece of advice and invest in a USB headset with boom microphone. Spend some time setting up the audio. The new USB headset you buy might be plug and play, but getting the audio levels just right isn’t.
Fourth, after taking all the above advice….when you tune into an active ATC frequency please LISTEN and LISTEN just a little bit more to see if there is an active conversation taking place. Even when being handed off from one ATC to another, you have plenty of time to LISTEN first. The reason why I’m suggesting you listen is to assist in the overall flow of communication.
What are you talking about Jerry? I’m glad you asked. Just like in normal conversation you have with a friend either face to face or on the phone or what ever, there is a period of time where you speak and then you stop talking and you listen while your friend speaks. This is the flow of normal conversation and is exactly what we learned when we were young.
In the virtual ATC world on VATSIM, the normal flow of communication works something like this. ATC issues instruction to pilot. Pilot reads back instruction to ATC. In some cases (as in reading back clearance) ATC might confirm the instructions the pilot read back. The point I’m making is there is a normal flow and an expected flow of communication.
In the above example, this is a communication between ATC and a pilot A. Let’s say pilot B is on frequency and is not carefully listening or just ignoring the normal flow of conversation. When ATC issues an instruction to pilot A, Pilot B should not speak on frequency until he is aware the conversation between Pilot A and ATC is finished.
Some may argue and ask the question…well how do you know when the conversation between ATC and Pilot A is completed? Again, depending on the situation you will know or you will learn over time. Let’s use another example. ATC is issuing vectors to Pilot A and providing runway assignment. Pilot A needs to read back or confirm this instruction to ATC. Typically once that read back is completed…then the conversation is finished.
Finally, when it is time to speak…speak clearly. So many fellow pilots sound like their mouth is stuffed with cotton balls and ATC have a difficult time understanding them. Remember….we all learned these very important lessons when we were small. Many of us just simply forgot over time. Have fun and LISTEN!
By the way, if any of you reading this are fellow ham radio operators. I operate mostly HF SSB, PSK and a few months ago tried JT-65 and truly love the mode. I also podcast about amateur radio. You can visit MyAmateurRadio.com to download/listen or find me on iTunes. The podcast is titled “The Practical Amateur Radio Podcast” 73 de KD0BIK.
Until next time,
Jerry
April 18, 2011 / admin / 0 Comments
I’ve changed the subject or title of this blog post a few times since I started typing all that I wanted to say. At this point I’m really not sure what it will be called….so it is just as much of a surprise to me as it might be to you the reader.
As I have stated many times, I’ve been flying computer sims on various computer hardware platforms for over 25 years. In those early beginnings I was still in high school and was one of those kids that wasn’t 100% sure what I wanted to be when I grew up. But airline pilot was really never in my top 10 list. So having said that, I never really got all that serious about learning all the procedures and perhaps this is why I struggled for so long on learning how to correctly land my airplane.
In the post Windows age of computer simming I have changed my ideas on what once was only a game to me. While airline pilot is still not in my top 10 list, at the age of 44 I guess I need to stick with just being an IT guy and not change careers. But learning and understanding how things are done is important to me.
Over the years my landings have sort of gone from being non-existent to crashes to controlled crashes to where I am today. Yes today I can pretty much make a great landing and my FSPassengers don’t complain much 
and my tires don’t pop. At least not all the time.
I learned how to fly SIDS and STARS back in the 2001 timeframe. It was sort of a requirement for VATSIM…at least for me. I say this because I know there are a lot of computer pilots today who do not know how to fly SIDS and STARS. You can see this from the way some pilots file flight plans. Now being involved with a VA and especially one that requires all flights to be flown online (VATSIM) I know from first hand experience that some of this is a lack of knowledge and some of it is just laziness. It’s easy to fix the lack of knowledge….but much harder to fix the laziness.
When I began learning SIDS and STARS, I looked at it as just a road map. After all, this really is all a SID and STAR is. It is a road map either to an airport or a road map from an airport. Of course we know there is a little more to it…but when I explain SIDS and STARS to new pilots I first get them to grasp the road map concept. It makes all the rest a little easier.
Anyway….I still find there is something new to learn with this hobby. One might think with nearly 30 years of experience that I know everything there is to know. Simply put….I don’t. However, I’ve also forgotten a lot from the days of heavy online VATSIM flying in the years 2001 – 2005. The five year or so hiatus I took from the hobby caused me to forget a lot more than I truly ever knew in the first place.
Back in those early VATSIM days for me I did fly a lot of “over the pond” flights. I don’t remember the heavy influence on NAT Tracks (North Atlantic Tracks). Perhaps we (or I) just ignored them….I just don’t recall. However, today there seems to be more information about them and I’ve spent the past few weeks trying to better understand how it works and what it means to me as a computer pilot.
Unfortunately I didn’t start my “learning” with enough time to participate in the VATSIM “Cross the Pond” event which took place a few weeks ago. So I did the right thing and stayed far away from the event, but am working to understand for next time. If you are interested in learning more about how NAT’s work (especially for VATSIM use), please visit the following link.
There truly is something in this hobby for everyone. I know many who frequently read this blog only fly offline and several who are like me tend to fly mostly connected to VATSIM. This is what makes the hobby what it is.
Well…I think I’ve settled on the title for this blog post. While I choose to fly computer sims as a way of de-stressing from my IT job….I find the challenges of learning and even making mistakes to be very therapeutic. If there is something you don’t know….just learn it. Practice makes perfect and don’t worry about making mistakes. We all make them and best of all….in our computer sim environment no one gets hurt.
Until next time…happy flying.
Jerry
December 29, 2010 / admin / 0 Comments
If you’ve followed some of my blog posts in the past 4-6 weeks, you know that I started flying on VATSIM again and also re-joined American Virtual Airlines. AvA was founded in the summer of 2001 and was the very first VA to be affiliated with VATSIM. While I wasn’t one of the “Founding Fathers”, I did join in August 2001 and within a few weeks had been offered the role of VP of Operations and managed several of the hubs. AvA was my virtual employer from 2001 until 2004 timeframe.
I started flying again with AvA just over a month ago. I joined the DFW hub and for the month of December have accumulated over 52 hours and I still have one more day to go. Anyway, after a few weeks I contacted the CEO of AvA and offered my assistance in whatever capacity he could use me. Initially his response was that he would keep me in mind for future openings (as there were none at the time). About a week later he contacted me again and told me about an open position for the AvA Training Hub. The position would be to manage the training hub.
So as you can tell from the subject of this blog post, I was officially offered and I accepted this position. I officially got started in the position yesterday and am learning about the automated PIREP system and trying to figure out what pilots are active and which ones need to be showed the door. Don’t worry…I’m not issuing any pink slips just yet. I granted everyone a 2 week amnesty to either start flying and file their required two PIREPS per month or just simply contact me and let me know what is going on.
Since this is my blog, I’m going to insert a little “Help Wanted” notice here. Are you looking to join a virtual airline? Would you like to fly for one of the oldest and best VA’s? Want to fly for the best American Airlines group? At American Virtual Airlines we offer a fully automated PIREP system complete with FSACARS/FSPassengers/FS Flight Keeper/XAcars integration. We offer a low commitment of only filing two PIREPs per month to remain fully active and while all flights must be flown on the VATSIM network, this really only enhances your overall FlightSim experiences.
I would love if you would stop by American Virtual Airlines and submit an application. If you have less than 100 verifiable VATSIM hours you’ll be assigned to the training hub. We offer complete training (soon to be fully automated) to help get you started flying on the VATSIM network.
As Frank Sinatra would sing…..Come Fly With Me, Let’s Fly, Let’s Fly Away.
Happy New Year!
Jerry
