VATSIM What is it?????

[iggy0075]

I've been reading a few posts and some people are mentioning vatsim an online atc program????

If that is true what is it like and why is it so much better then the default ATC in FS9.

So, if its all that you guys say it is could someone let me know how I can use it and if it costs anything.  

THANKS,
Jason

[rajiv2]

Its the best online ATC my friend. you cannot compare this to  FSatc because the atc your are talking to is not an ai but a well trained trafic controller in al laround the world. its help you follow those realcharts or jeppensen charts and vector you. In vatsim there is a lot of traffic espcially in America and europe side wich is more challenging, the best part of this  is that you will learn to follow the SID, STARS charts or approach charts, filing a flightpane on your own, learn the airwaysand waypoints to your destination of your choice, watch the traffic and most of you will be a ble to talk to the atc like the real pilots do;) i hope i did explain this well. join us and have fun!

www.vatsim.net (this where you can get a lots of information)

[iggy0075]

Thanks for the reply.  

I am really confused.  I registered and downloaded the squakbox and the fsuip-spelling????   I then started a flight and connected w/ vatsim.  but from there i'm lost.  i can't seem to be able to communicate with atc.  and I am not seeing any traffic at all, from kphl and even kjfk.   I had to of done something wrong???

[andrewgeorge60]

hi, im in the same situation, my friend, i downloaded everything and installed it, but ive no idea how you use it or get it started, everybody says its so good, but i cand seem to use it too see, hopefully someone will help us!!

And sooooonn!!!!

Cheers all,

Andy

[Staiduk]

Starting and running Vatsim is a nightmare the first couple of times you do it; but once you get it down it becomes easy.
The important thing is to follow the instructions to the letter. There are 3 programs that must be started in sequence for it to work; mix them up and Vatsim won't connect.

I recommend printing the instructions out and following them step by step.

[-sam-]

Well meanwhile there is only one Vatsim Software that combines everything. The setup worked well for me.
But before you connect I only can recommend you read all the tutorials on the vatsim site in depth . Just downloading and connecting is a bad idea !! Actually you

[TwoLow]

Last night was my first time at VATSIM and here is how it went for me.

1) First, its a good idea to click on virtual display at vatsim.net. That will show you in real time a map and all the planes in the air and what controllers are online. If you want to fly out of Atlanta and you see no ATC and one little plane over Georgia, that is a indication that your flight will be lonely and boring. Last night for me Atlanta was quite busy but this morning it was a ghost town yet the west coast was busy. Plan your flights around where everyone is.

2) Also, after starting a VATSIM account go to the pilot resource link and register there. That tutorial has the ATC lingo to correctly talk to ATC and what their responses mean.

3) The guys in the towers (ATC) have been doing this a long time and they tend to rattle instructions out so fast that i could not understand them so I elected to do text chat with them. That way you can still listen to the other guys voice talk to ATC but you yourself can type in your requests and they will type them back. That helped me a lot last night. Whatever freq your radio is tuned to will be the person your text typing will be sent to.

4) There is no pink line guiding you to the runway so as soon as ATC told me to take 'Mike to 27R' I went 'Uh oh'. What i did was opened AFCAD and made sure the 'link to FS2004' thing is checked. I opened up the Atlanta airport in AFCAD and there I saw the crosshairs of where my plane was in relation to the runway. I would have been lost in the dark without that reference.

I messed up by pushing out without telling ATC and got chewed out by that  ;) but we all make mistakes. A Delta landed while i was about to take off....on the wrong runway  ;D  he too got chewed out.

I did just a short hop from atlanta to macon to get the hang of it and it was fun. This morning I flew back to Atlanta but no one was online within hundreds of miles so I flew in and landed without ATC as when your online there is no backup AI ATC or anything.

[JBaymore]

Yup.... I find VASTSIM rather daunting too, from both a setup standpoint as well as thinking about flying there.  

It is highly "attractive" because it is the only really busy and "reliable" online flying site that has more than a couple of dozen aircraft in the air at a time whenever you check in.  But listening in, and in reading their "rules", I have found that it is NOT looking very newbie friendly at all.  If you aren't close to a real air transport pilot in skills.... you'd better be flying a Cessna 172 into small GA airports...... or I don't think you will be very welcome  ;).

Listening in there is very much like just listening in to the live ATC feeds on the net for major airports.  It IS "as real as it gets"...... and that exttends out to what -sam- said...... you'd better be close to a real world pilot in skills if you want to be very comfortable there.


I tend to fly in ATC sessions occasionally on WSPilots and on ESKyWorld now.  I like both of them a lot.  Formal... but informal at the same time.  But like most online flying........ it is rare if you find more than a couple dozen aircraft in the air....around the whole world.  VATSIM typically has at least 300 aircraft and dozens of controller on at any given time.

I used to fly at WestcoastATC a bit ansd WAS very happy there... thought I had "found a home".  But the ATOC thing they tried was a total debacle (they have since ditched it)..... and in the process of sorting that mess out, I found out from their angry and arrogant posts, that a lot of the "main folks" who hang out there aren't very nice people.  (Do have to say that Erik... the main site-owner type person is very, VERY nice).

Anyway........... online flight is a lot of fun... but it takes some work to find the right place.

best,

..................john

[TacitBlue]

I'm guessing they don't cater to us VFR GA pilots then? I would like to practice talking to ATC, but not if I have to do it IFR in an airliner.

[TwoLow]

Actually I think they do. They don't seem to care what your flying.

The ATC guys are just happy having people playing. The last thing they want is to sign on and not see any planes around.

[JBaymore]

TacitBlue,

GA is apparently OK...... but if you are trying to land at a major airport with "the big boys"....... you'll either get vectored to a separate runway (if that is possible) or you'd better be ready to do flapless approaches and landings in your C172..... with an Airbus or a Boeing closing on your six at 160 knots  ;).

It seems the vast bulk of the traffic is commercial AT flights, I think.  I have been "lurking" for a while to get the feel of the place.

best,

.................john

[rajiv2]

for VFR and IFR planning it just depends with the atc

atc is not there everytime any day but it all depends wich controller is online just check in this site to see whose flying and hwhos doing the atc at what place.
http://data.vatsim.net/atcapplet/ada2jar.html

for newbie read the manual
sometime there is an event where lots of atc will be online.

[rajiv2]

vatsim atc are friendly just say that you are new. or if yuo want just observe  on what they are doing.

here some people whose online in vatsim august 14, 2005
europe

america

asia

[jrpilot]

I was on VATSIM yesterday and decided to fly to KDTW (Detroit) since when I departed there was a arrival controller there but as I began cruising he got off but by the time I was ready to fly the Cetus2 arrival he was on along with about 10 other aircraft  :o at KDTW swo I was being vectored all over.  Vatsim makes FS way more realistic and if you have voice even, more better.

[Mees]

Dude, you are right, me neither!
I don't understand a damn thing of it!
WILL SOMEBODY PLEASE POST A FULL SCALE TUTORIAL OF LOGGN' IN ON VATSIM???


thank you,

best regards,

Mayer