Virtual Sky - 17th issue

VIRTUAL SKY MAGAZINE FOR THE ONLINE FLIGHT SIMULATION COMMUNITY 17th edition • December 2015

AVIATION CELEBRATION

Crowded Skies is coming!

Crowded Skies 2015 LKAA FIR 30 hours First time of a woman at IVAO Events: Lap of the loop / BASM 2015 Senior Staff vacancies Notam System Aeroflot virtual

EDITORIAL IT IS COMING! So it is Christmas! And with it comes the biggest gift IVAO can bring us: Crowded Skies! I don’t know you, but I am very anxious for this event, when you can enjoy a virtual world so crowded as in real life. And it will be a pleasure to fly and control with all of our IVAO friends. More than a record, it is an event to celebrate aviation and friendship.

And we can not talk about Crowded Skies without talking about the support that Aerosoft gives us: the company does great support to all online community, and we need to thank Aerosoft for all they do for IVAO. Virtual Sky has some news! Now we have an entire team to write articles, do the revision, and improve the design. So probably, in the next editions, we can have a bigger magazine, with more sections. Who knows...

So I want to salute Henk Wolsink and Robert Pepio for their appointment to MTA1 and MTA2. You already saw we work hard and with a lot of commitment, and we (Fares and myself) expect you to follow the guideline that “if a thing must be done, it deserves to be well done”.

Congratulations, and welcome!

It is hard, really hard, to do a monthly magazine: you need to ask for articles, propose inquiries, ask for screenshots, and tons of other things. But again, if a it must be done, it deserve to be well done, so we will always do our best to bring you this magazine monthly. You deserve it!

This month we celebrate one year from the event in Brazil with the biggest real life national press coverage: “1st Fly-in Nordeste”, and I was the proud organizer.

Thank you for reading the magazine, we exist because you read it. Thank you, dear reader! We, the Virtual Sky staff, wish you and your family good Holidays and we look forward to seeing you in 2016.

Fernando Hippólyto Virtual Sky editor Magazine Team Manager MTL Designer [219971]

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DECEMBER 2015

Publisher International Virtual Aviation Organization (IVAO) VZW Editor Fernando Hippólyto (219971) Magazine Team Stephen Howarth (305511) - PRD John Swaney (449737) - PRAD Fernando Hippólyto (219971) - MTM Fares Belkhiria (384422) - MTAM Henk Wolsink (164835) - MTA1 Robert Pepio (404098) - MTA2 Layout and design Fernando Hippólyto (219971) Front cover picture Virtual Sky 2nd edition Back cover picture Peter Bosch (396868) IVAO website http://ivao.aero/ Logo designers Stephen Howarth (305511) Splendor Bouman (155904) Disclaimer Any information, suggestions or illustrations published in this magazine are exclusively for use with computer flight simulator.

All views expressed in this magazine are the views of respective authors. The publisher does not accept any responsibility for those views.

Copyright None of the information in this magazine may be reproduced in any form without prior permission from the publisher.

Contact pr@ivao.aero

SUMMARY

DECEMBER EDITION 6

Executive Council

20

7

IVAO Active Divisions

21

8

Senior Staff

Crowded Skies and other news Russian division United Arab Emirates division Notam System Crowded Skies with a different spirit Crowded Skies at logistics

10 Spirit of IVAO

LKAA FIR 30 hours My first ATC on IVAO

The best of IVAO: The users

12 What is the best thing you enjoy at Crowded Skies 16 Screenshot winner: edited 18 Screenshot winner: non-edited

Around the world

Discover Belgium airspace

Next events

Come and fly!

22

Picture of the month

Reflections

24

Demistifying Special Ops

26

VA Hangar

Crowded Skies at Special Operations

Motivation is what gets you started; habit is what keeps you going (Aeroflot virtual)

27

IVAO

Senior Staff vacancies IVAO numbers

14 Past events

Barcelona AirSim Meeting 2015 Lap of the loop

DECEMBER 2015

Virtual Sky

3

EXECUTIVE Greetings IVAO Members It is that time of the year again! Crowded Skies!

As you all know, last year a record of 2530 simultaneous connections was set, which was a great achievement.

So let’s see if we can now set a new record.

We can of course, only achieve this with all of your support and participation in this great global IVAO event.

So a message to all staff members in all divisions, kindly please ensure that you arrange events in your respective divisions, to ensure the necessary participation.

With regards to the Executive Council, we have recently implemented some new initiatives and changes to the organisation.

1) Merge of the Australia division and New Zealand OIF into the new Oceanic Region MCD. Regarding the eastern side of the world, we are hoping to see some more activity in this region, and partnerships between the respective divisions in the part of this world are a critical component in the future success of this region.

2) Merge of the United States and Canada divisions into the new North America Region MCD. 3) The merge of the Logistics and Software Development department, into a single department called DEVOPs. 4) We are looking into a strategy where the respective HQ departments will be assigned advisors to designated regions around the world. This is to ensure global coverage, and efficient staff duty for all the time zones around the world.

There are other initiatives that are presently in progress...and once we have further information, clarification and confirmation, then will also announce these as well.

Keep the Spirit!

On behalf of the Executive Council

Jeremy Rochefort, Spyros Gallos, Denton Young, Nicolas Gelli and Mathias Meyer Executive Council

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ACTIVE DIVISIONS THE RUSSIAN DIVISION The Russian Federation is the largest country in the world. Russia has 72 international airports in 31 flight information regions. By the middle of November, 2015, the Russian Federation Division has 756 active members and continues to grow.

In 2015 the Russian Division hosted many international and local events including the events provided by Virtual Airlines. One of the most popular event was the - “RFE Moscow” that took place on September 05th, and was aligned with the celebration of the birthday of Moscow City.

We established a intense communication with St. Petersburg Youth Space Club. With this Сlub we organize monthly events in format of real life meetings on the last Sunday of each month, with full ATC and flights in Boeing 737-800 cockpit that was build by the enthusiasts of the Cosmonautic club.

For pilots and controllers, Russian Training Department offers the course of trainings for PP, SPP, ADC and APC ratings, including (three 2.5 hours theoretical trainings and three practical trainings for each rating with pre-exam checkout) which members of our division can request before examination to prepare and learn all that is required.

Vasiliy Alexandrov Director - Russia [350631]

THE UNITED ARAB EMIRATES DIVISION The AE Division has been undergoing some major changes over the last few months. We identified a huge potential in the region, and more specifically in the UAE, and we decided to invest all our efforts in offering a solid and innovative structure for our members. Our work has been recognized by the users, and we duplicated our size in just 3 months.

We are now working very closely with our neighbour divisions at some important projects, the main one being Gulf Control. We will be creating a whole set of resources (sector files and documentation) for our neighbour FIRs (Bahrain, Qatar and Oman) as they currently do not have any active division.

We will also create a unified control position that will encompass all the major airports of the region when active, and this should guarantee a lot more ATC coverage for our users.

We are in the process of developing a new website, and we will soon start working on a Training Academy. We have developed some great web tools for the Training Department that help us tracking and completing Training Sessions and GCAs. Our PR and Events department is working hard as well: after the huge success of the Dubai RFE, we have prepared the UAE online day (Fridays), and we are preparing some major events (UAE National Day, Abu Dhabi RFE and various AirBridge events). A lot of news and a lot more to come!! Pay us a visit on the forum and our Facebook Page to stay informed of the latest news and announcements, and come fly/control with us!

Giorgio La Pira

NPO Governor Director - United Arab Emirates [350631]

DECEMBER 2015

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SENIOR STAFF

NOTAMS SYSTEM

our simulation environment. Users can find exams in course, active restricted areas for

One of the more important keys for

special operations, local information about

aviation is information. It establishes the

airport sceneries (for instance, a specific

required level of security, not only at a

runway does not exist in a particular version

phraseology level but also with both the pre-

of the add-on), preferential configurations,

flight information available for pilots and

special requirements for an event, etcetera.

available resources used by ATCOs. Pilots and ATCOs depend on the information

Where can you find the Beta version?

provided by the corresponding competent

http://atc.notams.ivao.aero. Your Division

authority.

is now ready to provide you with the information you need.

Information is vital, and IVAO deserves a centralized system where the information can

be

accessed

easily

and

quickly.

Information made for IVAO and with IVAObased content. This system is based on the

8

Elias Herrero ATC Operations Director NPO Vice President

Notams concept -widely used in real life

NPO Governor

- but avoiding any data that is not valid in

[218981]

Virtual Sky

DECEMBER 2015

SENIOR STAFF PILOTS!!! JOIN THE CS 2015 WITH A DIFFERENT SPIRIT Last year, 2530 people were at their home to enjoy this spectacular event that brings together all fans of aviation on our fantastic network. There’s no doubt that this is the biggest event in our community and I really wish this year we will be able to break a new record. On that night everybody will join the network to achieve this goal and we expect that every pilot that will be online, will fly in controlled areas rather than in remote locations without controllers, so to grant, not only his own amusement, but also controllers one. Everyone of us should have only two targets in mind the moment he or she, hits the connect button: having fun all together and that your click will donate 1€ to someone in need, thanks to our sponsor Aerosoft.

If every pilot forgets about the award and takes the time to check which airports will be controlled and plans his flight accordingly, that means a short flight between two controlled airports or, in case of a long haul trip, making sure to be in controlled areas during rush hours, then the event will be a great success because, along with the record itself, with more money donated, it will hit the real spirit of IVAO where people of our community shows that they care not only about their own enjoyment but also about others.

Join us on December 12th, 2015 for this unique event! Bring your wings, let’s shatter the old records and set a new one!

Massimo Totaro

Flight Operations Director [220138]

CROWDED SKIES AT LOGISTICS The period leading up to the yearly Crowded Skies event is always a very challenging period for the team. This event, originally designed as a test for the Logistics department on how the servers would behave under high pressure, brings more than 2000 simultaneously active pilots and controllers to the network. On a normal busy day the number of active users is around 1000, so this event more than doubles that.

Why is this event so challenging for Logistics?

The goal of this yearly event is clear: bring as many active users on the network at the same time. For the users it is great to fly and control on a network with lots of activity. During this event it is more than ever important that the network remains stable. Because this high amount of users happens only once a year, during the event, it is difficult to test these conditions beforehand. This makes the CS event itself each year again a big test for the network and the team.

Follow us!

During the event we will be closely monitoring all infrastructure components to provide you with the best experience possible! If something might unexpectedly break, we might need a way to communicate with you. Please follow our twitter account @ IVAOLogistics and keep a close look there in case of any network problems. We will post information and tips on how to continue.

Last but not least, enjoy your flying and controlling. Together we make the network what it is today, a place to enjoy for everyone.

Thijs Houtenbos Logistics Director Software Developer [346186]

DECEMBER 2015

Virtual Sky

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SPIRIT OF IVAO LKAA FIR 30 HOURS LKAA FIR 30 HRS Online is one of the largest events in the Czech division, which we organize every autumn. During this ewent we full coverage the Czech Republic airspace by ATC for 30 hours. Best air traffic controllers in our division at this event will gather in one place (mostly is our control center located in Kolín, in the company of one of our members), where they take care of a virtual aerial skies over our territory. This tradition originated in 2005, when was organized very first time.

In 2010, even these two events (spring and autumn), which was extended to a full 36 hours of full coverage. (Spring event this year was also my first experience with the network of IVAO.) Journey to plan and organize such an event is very long and difficult. Date is choosen about 6 months in advance, so there is enough time for arranging the necessary things. We always trying to find a date (usually the weekend which is followed by public holidays in the country) that could participate as much members as possible. Once it knows where the action takes place, we says the official way to HQ Events Department request for acceptance and inclusion of an event in the calendar. Furthermore, the website put up for approximately 1.5 months subscription form. Here they have the opportunity to log all members of the division who wish to attend the event as an air traffic controller and also meet the requirements set by the HQ of the division, or they want to go as technical support. After the closure of the applications are beginning to selected individuals go through proper training, to the beginning of the event were their knowledge and management at a professional level.

Furthermore is created list of shifts and of curse brakes, for controllers where and when they will by controlling during whole event.

At the outset also look for areas in which we can come together and create a virtual IATCC. Already several times we have rented spaces in the company of one of our members, who we are very grateful to have still patience with us.

During the holiday season is on the planning,

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DECEMBER 2015

“thirties” total peace. The real excitement and “chaos” begins in early September, when it is necessary to write articles about the event in both Czech and English language and begin to publish it on social networks to get into the subconscious of the public and members.

Regarding the operation by the pilots, those are about a month before the event opened booking system of flights. In this system are RFE flights or it is agreed by cooperation with the divisions around the world (if it is not an RFE is preparing booking system even more challenging, as agreed cooperation with the divisions is not as simple as it seems). Each

SPIRIT OF IVAO year is given award for a certain number of flights flown and this year we even had a contest sponsored by the company REX simulations for first two pilots.

When there are finished things about the course of events for members, we need to begin to look for technical equipment.

It must be enough to fill all positions, plus is always useful when is next free piece, if some doesn‘t work. Usually we have 12 open positions (LKPR_DEL, LKPR_GND, LKPR_TWR, LKPR_APP, LKPR_F_APP, LKPR_ DEP, LKAA_E_CTR, LKAA_W_CTR and LKTB_ APP, LKTB_TWR, LKTB_GND) including Follow Me car (LKPR_FMC).

Everything elapses really fast and became weekend “W”. In the day „D“ when beginning the action is needed to arrive early as we can to have time for preparing everything, involve technical equipment, do a quick briefing about the event and finaly whe sould start controlling. During the event, sometimes there are minor technical problems, but everything is always quickly resolved. After the event to make a short debriefing thanking to all interested and handing and give diplom as a memento. Then begins to tiding up and leaving to their homes, to sleep deficit.

Following few days after the end still devote the whole event. It is necessary to grant the awards, write debriefing, edit photos, announce the winners of the competition and publish all to members and the public.

It may seem that organizing this event is easy, but the opposite is true. Coordinate all that is needed is a simple matter, but it does not deter us, and unless something substantial, we plan to continue these actions do. So perhaps next year on freqouency over our airspace!

Veronika Drimalova

Czech Division Public Relations Assistant Coordinator

MY FIRST ATC ON IVAO A few weeks ago my boyfriend drove to a Public Demonstration Event in Innsbruck and he asked me if I want to accompany him. First I was I bit lost, but then members of the network told me a lot about the basic procedures. It became more and more interesting for me and at the end of the event I started operating the software- for example writing with pilots on text only or entering the clearances into the labels.

The day after I decided to join the network and we created an account. He clarified me of the required things like software or airport procedures.

On Saturday, 28th November, my boyfriend and I did the first ATC session.

First I was very nervous and shy, but then he went a bit angry so I decided to try talking to the Pilots. More and more I became better and better! But then I heard a familiar voice from the Innsbruck event and suddenly I was like a little child who was hiding behind his mother. It was very hard to understand what the members are saying via TeamSpeak! I was really happy for having somebody sitting next to me with very much knowledge!

At the end of our session a guy asked me if I’m a woman or a man! He told me that it is very unusual that a woman joins such networks, but during the event in IBK I got to know a woman from Austria who is also on IVAO. For me it is a very nice experience to learn more about procedures and being able to expand my knowledge. As the first step is done now, which was the most difficult, I’m sure I’ll provide ATC on IVAO more often.

Elisabeth Schaller [505204]

[334085]

DECEMBER 2015

Virtual Sky 11

THE BEST OF IVAO: THE USERS! WHAT IS THE BEST THING YOU ENJOY AT CROWDED SKIES? I enjoyed the full en-route ATC...Switch from a frequency to a another one is really realistic, and I love it ;D ;D Robert Pepio Magazine Team Advisor Event Advisor - Spain Public Relations Assistant Coordinator - Spain 404098 I enjoy the fact that 2,200 people are willing to come fly at once and give it a very realistic feeling... Literally Crowded Skies.

Ashley Redfearn Assistant Webmaster - North America Region Oakland ARTCC Chief 457807 I love the fact that I can achieve the dream I’ll never got and that is to be like a real pilot for one night, flying in almost surreal conditions. Full ATC, Air traffic and fun!

Goitseona Diale 494492 The feeling of realism - The virtual skies are closer to the real ones.

Nuno Pinto 298345 It’s a privilege to see this human and technical high achievement, although we suppose it is only partial sample of what will be in the future simulation.

Leonard Forissier Lussac 362655 It is a special day. It is the day in which we unite almost all pilots / ATC to be together in the skies of IVAO. Alexis Martin 334383

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Designed by Freepik.com

MONTHLY INQUIRY

DECEMBER 2015

Virtual Sky 13

PAST EVENTS BARCELONA

AIRSIM

MEETING 2015

events -where visitors can feel how exciting it is to be ATCs and pilots, but also training sessions in which visitors could learn the basics of the aeronautic knowledge. 8

The Barcelona AirSim Meeting 2015 (BASM15) took place at Casteldefells, near Barcelona, on October 3rd and 4th. This was the fourth edition and this event is already just one of the most important aviation

events

in

Spain

where

the

simulation plays an important role. Three associations are in charge to organize all activities, and IVAO is one of them together with AEAC and Aerocultura.

Visitors could enjoy a wide variety of activities this year. Those of which professionals share their knowledge, trying to promote the aeronautic culture. And obviously, all activities that simulation fans expect from this kind of events. Two full days of an endless aeronautics contents.

Talking about numbers, the average

rooms were available to make all of these activities possible.

We would like to thank the German Division to collaborate with us in the “AirBridge

Barcelona-Hamburg�

event,

in which the involved airspaces were full of aircrafts during the five hours that the event lasted. And we also want to thank all volunteers who wanted to collaborate by means of conferences, events assistance, and moving stuff around. Finally, all of this would not be possible without the collaboration of public institutions: Casteldefells City Council and Polytechnic University of Catalonia.

BASM16 is already waiting for you.

The objective for next year will be to

number of visitors each year is close to

internationalize and increase the coverage

2000. Families who wish to spend their

of this event. And this will not be possible

weekend and know the exciting world of

without you. We are trying to set up the

aviation; most of them come back year

event in such a way which will become

after year. Engineering students who can

more attractive for non-Spanish people

enjoy the technical conferences. And all

by making an activities agenda even more

people related with the simulation who

aimed at this objective.

want to share this great experience with

See you next year at Casteldefells.

many others. All of them make up our large family, BASM. IVAO people play an important role as organizers. They were in command to organize not only the well-known real ATC

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DECEMBER 2015

Juan Rocha Assistant Director - Spain Membership Advisor [217392]

PAST EVENTS LAP OF THE LOOP May 2015 saw a new team take shape in the Special Operations department of the UK/IE division with Craig McLaren joining SOAC, with Ryan Moore in the SOC role.

After some initial administrative work in the back ground, the team decided to kick off with an event that was about one thing, and one thing only...... Fun!

a long parabolic back straight that ends abruptly with another tight tricky section to bring you to the conclusion of your timed attempt. It’s a lot harder than it seems at first and the key to achieving a good time is how you handle the differences in required energy and momentum throughout the ever changing circumstances of the lap.

Pilots depart from RAF Valley and head direct to the holding area west of the course

After some thought it was agreed that a

out over the sea. This can be a frustrating

timed race around the famous “Mach Loop”

time, as with the volume of participants

within the Low Flying Area 7 would suffice.

being particularly high, the pilots can be

Sandwiched

picturesque

asked to hold as long as is needed to clear

villages of Dolgellau and Machynlleth on

the field. Once cleared into the Loop the

the west coast of Wales, the Loop would

fun begins, and those that have practiced

provide just the kind of simple, yet highly

the route and know their airframe always

skilled fun that was required to appeal

come out on top, whilst the also rans are left

to the slightly competitive nature of the

to lick their wounds from coming too close

fast jet and warbird pilots within the

to the trees at Corris corner or extending

community, that fancied themselves up

too far out at Machynlleth and losing all

to the task of taking on one of the most

their energy. Whatever the circumstances,

challenging, recognized, low flying areas in

there is never a perfect lap and if you didn’t

the world.

place well, then you know what you need

between

the

The “Mach Loop”, so named after the

to do for next year don’t you!

village of Machynlleth that graces the

All in all it’s great fun for all participants.

south-western most corner of the circuit,

The SO team, the ATC crew and everyone

is an area used extensively for low flying

within the IVAO UK/IE division extend a

training by both the RAF and USAF. It is

warm welcome and wish the very best of

frequented by many “Spotters” due to the

luck to everyone who takes part.

beauty of the countryside and the obvious frequent low flying. The course is an odd

Only time will tell who will become the King of the Loop!

shaped circle with various entry, exits and “Spotter points” where all the real life shots are taken.

As a challenge to the pilot it has it all.

A fast entry into extremely tight sections where you really test that “G” suit. Then

Craig McLaren Special Operations Advisor Special Operations Assistant Coordinator - United Kingdom & Ireland [423577]

DECEMBER 2015

Virtual Sky 15

THE BEST OF IVAO: THE USERS!

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DECEMBER 2015

SCREENSHOT CONTEST - EDITED PICTURE

Daniel M端ller 293857

DECEMBER 2015

Virtual Sky 17

THE BEST OF IVAO: THE USERS!

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DECEMBER 2015

SCREENSHOT CONTEST - NON-EDIT PICTURE

Juergen Kopelent 133382

DECEMBER 2015

Virtual Sky 19

MOVIE REVIEW

www.ivao.be

IVAO BELGIUM

IMPORTANT AIRFIELDS Brussels National - EBBR Our main airport located near the capital.

An important airport for cargo, passengers and diplomatic visits as the European Parliament is located in Brussels.

Liège - EBLG Liège serves as an important airport for cargo operations, it is the main hub of TNT Airways. It also serves as a regional airport for vacationers.

Belgium, located in western Europe with Brussels, the heart of Europe, as capital. Belgian Airspace consists of the Brussels FIR and Luxembourg.

We have a set of important airfields to offer for flying, from important international hubs, to cargo hubs and regional airports for vacationers.

All of this is located in a relative small airspace, so you’re up to a specific set of procedures to keep air traffic fluent and seperated. It certainly is a great experience to feel a rush.

Tours IVAO Belgium offers you a series of tours which cover every aspect, going from Heli, to VFR to flying the big freight dogs.

Luxembourg - ELLX Luxembourg, the home of Luxair and Cargolux. An important economic hub for Luxembourg in both passengers and cargo operations.

On 21st February we will again organise our RFE. This time we’ll be doing ATC live from a, at this moment, still secret location.

Be sure not to miss this event!

Ostend - EBOS Our coastal airport, serving both cargo and passengers. The airport serves as the local tourism and economic center of our coast.

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DECEMBER 2015

NEXT EVENTS DECEMBER 2015 Sunday

Monday

Tuesday

[BR+IT] Atlantic Crossing [6 DIC | 09z - 11z] [IT+BR] Long Haul Event 2015 - Palermo LICJ>Recife SBRF [XA] RFE Los Angeles Online Evening with Polish Division Serbia Online Evening

07

Slovenia Online Evening [GR] Hellas online day [AT] Austrian Division Onlineday [IT] Italy Online Day

Thursday

Friday

Saturday

02

03

04

05

08

09

10

11

12

[ES] Spanish Online Day [RO] Romanian National Day Fly-In/Fly-Out [HU] Online evening [RO]Romania Online Evening [TR] Online Day [NL] Netherlands Online Evening [CZ] Czech Online Tuesday [FR] French Online Day

06

Wednesday

01

[FR] French Online Day [ES] Spanish Online Day [ES + PT][MACARONESIA AIRBRIDGE] 17 - 21 UTC [HU] Online evening [DE] German Onlineday [RO]Romania Online Evening [TR] Online Day [NL] Netherlands Online Evening [CZ] Czech Online Tuesday

[XN] The Northern Online Day

[XN] The Northern Online Day

[RU] Russian Online Day [BE+CZ] Brussels Prague Airbridge CHECK YOUR MINIMA !

[RU] Russian Online Day

[DE] Nikolaus Fly-In EDDH Hamburg Nikolaus Flyin [DZ] Algerian Online Day [NC] New Caledonia Online Day

[DZ] Algerian Online Day [NC] New Caledonia Online Day

[DZ] IVAO ALGERIA SPEAK ENGLISH [IL] Israel Online Day [FI] The Annual Rovaniemi X-Mas Fly-In [EG] Egypt Online Day [CL] Chile Online Day

Crowded Skies XII One Night, One Record

13

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20

21

22

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25

26

27

28

29

30

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-

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[HK] RFE Hong Kong 2015 Online Evening with Polish Division Serbia Online Evening [XA+FR] The Fort Connection

[CL] De Vacaciones a Isla de Pascua Online Evening with Polish Division [DE] Mega Fly-In Frankfurt Serbia Online Evening [BR] Full ATC TMA SP/ BH/BR

Online Evening with Polish Division Serbia Online Evening

Slovenia Online Evening [GR] Hellas online day [AT] Austrian Division Onlineday [IT] Italy Online Day

[AU] Australia Avalon Fly In [GR] Hellas online day Slovenia Online Evening [AT] Austrian Division Onlineday [IT] Italy Online Day

[GR] Hellas online day Slovenia Online Evening [AT] Austrian Division Onlineday [IT] Italy Online Day

[ES] Spanish Online Day [HU] Online evening [DE] German Onlineday [RO] Romania Online Evening [TR] Online Day [NL] Netherlands Online Evening [CZ] Czech Online Tuesday [FR] French Online Day

[ES] Spanish Online Day [HU] Online evening [RO] Romania Online Evening [TR] Online Day [DE] German Onlineday [CZ] Czech Online Tuesday [NL] Netherlands Online Evening [FR] French Online Day

[ES] Spanish Online Day [HU] Online evening [DE] German Onlineday [RO] Romania Online Evening [TR] Online Day [NL] Netherlands Online Evening [CZ] Czech Online Tuesday [FR] French Online Day

[XN] The Northern Online Day

[XN] The Northern Online Day

[XN] The Northern Online Day

[RU] Russian Online Day

[RU] Russian Online Day

DECEMBER 2015

[DZ] Algerian Online Day [NC] New Caledonia Online Day

[DZ] Algerian Online Day [NC] New Caledonia Online Day

[PF] Bora-Bora Airshow 2015 [DZ] IVAO ALGERIA SPEAK ENGLISH [EG] Egypt Online Day [CL] Chile Online Day

[DZ] IVAO ALGERIA SPEAK ENGLISH [EG] Egypt Online Day [CL] Chile Online Day

Virtual Sky 21

Photo of the month

Reflections

Sami Sakji 279572

DEMISTIFYING SPECIAL OPS CROWDED SKIES AT SPECIAL OPERATIONS This month’s Virtual Sky Magazine is dedicated to “Crowded Skies XII”. An event organised each year to test the capabilities of our great network. As with many of the previous editions of Crowded Skies, there will also be a Special Operations equivalent to accomodate for those who wish to fly their SpecOps aircraft during this event, rather than a civillian one. HQ SpecOps department have already started preparations for such an event. The details of the event will be announced in the HQ SpecOps forum, so make sure not to miss it!

Though Crowded Skies is one of the few events organised by the HQ SpecOps department annually, there are many more hosted by the divisions. It is the divisions’ Special Operations (Assistant) Coordinators who are the main point of contact for hosting any SpecOps events in a division. The SOCs/SOACs are usually the people to initiate organising an SO event as well, though others could also organise an SO event under certain conditions.

Usually these events aren’t limited to just a division either. The SO community is a very coherent community who usually extend their invitations internationally as well.

This invitation is gladly accepted by SO pilots and ATC from other divisions, who will all make an effort to participate.

Though almost anything is possible in terms of scenarios for an SO event, they are bound to some rules. I’m sure everyone can appreciate that the nature of SO events on the network might be a little bit more prone to conflict between members than your average civillian event. For this reason the SpecOps Dept has implemented a set of rules to be followed by everyone organising an SO event. Every event will have to adhere to IVAO R&R. The R&R are very broad when describing SpecOps though. Members can find a more detailed explanation of

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DECEMBER 2015

all the rules regarding SpecOps (events) in the Special Operations Directive on the main IVAO website (Community>Special Operations>Directive).

One of the most important rules for organising SO events on the network, is that every idea for an event will have to be sent to HQ SpecOps Dept for review and approval. Reviewing and approving events, as well as managing the SO events calendar, administering points for the SpecOps pilot and ATC awards etc. falls under the responsibility of the Special Operations Advisor 1. The HQ SpecOps Dept will do their utmost to accomodate everyone’s request. Fortunately it rarely happens HQ SpecOps Dept have to ask for (part of) an idea for an event to be changed.

The very vast majority of proposals consist of very well thought out, very fun events.

The possibilities for SO events are much greater than those for civillian events.

Event organisors use their creativity very well, which leads to a great variety of fun and challenging events. From firefighting to advanced combat operations training.

In next edition’s Virtual Sky we’ll go a little bit more in depth how to go about organising an SO event. For now, we hope to see you all during Crowded Skies!

Fabian de Jong

Special Operations Assistant Director Special Operations Coordinator – The Netherlands Training Advisor – The Netherlands [406776]

GENERAL AVIATION

DECEMBER 2015

Virtual Sky 25

VA HANGAR MOTIVATION IS WHAT GETS YOU STARTED. HABIT IS WHAT KEEPS YOU GOING What is a Virtual Airlines?

First of all - people, pilots VA consists of. And one of the main goals of the VA management is to create a conditions for it is pilots that make them to do more and more flights.

Creating the VA Aeroflot we decided that what we wanted to do is not just another website with the booking possibility. We wanted to create a community of people passionate about aviation and performing flights with their favourite airline call sign.

Today we understand that all VA users can be separated ionto three groups and each of these groups must to be considered in an individual way. Let’s talk about it in more details.

The first group – newcomers. The main reason why people join VA - they like a real airline, which is a virtual prototype. The most important part for this group is the VA website – it must be done properly, stylish and good-looking for Z generation so the website can attract newcomers. At the first visit users see our online timetable and there are always en-route flights so people understand that the VA operates and is active. A simple registration procedure is quite important as well as a possibility to make flights straight away after creating a profile. Minimum clicks, intuitively understandable.

The second group are the pilots with one to five flights. Once the pilot made his first successfull flight and obtained his very first award at the VA, the VA staff objective is to provide more information

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to the user about the website features, about the company and community, it’s rules and regulations. At this stage we are trying to establish personal contact with the pilot, invite him to join one of the flight squadrons and visit our TeamSpeak3 server, which is one of our main tools to create an active community - the server is active 24/7 and you can hardly find a time there are no users.

And finally the third group of users with five or more flights completed. This group is the most numerous and requires no less effort than the previous two. Keep these guys motivated is not a easy task. It is necessary to constantly move forward, improve the website and its tools - pilots must see and feel that with the increase in their hours flying for the VA the company is also evolving by itself, introducing new features, new pilots and the average daily number of flights increases as well. One of the tools to cooperate with this group - is using the mailing list. We send our e-inflight magazine with the latest company and virtual aviation world news, providing links to the new articles and manuals in our library, announcing the upcoming events and trainings.

Training and examinations on the IVAO and VA ratings is also a motivation tool. For example, the pilot will not be able to get a higher rank in the VA before he passes the exam at IVAO even if the pilot has a million hours flying in his VA profile. Training one of the most important and complex issue because it requires training manuals, trainers with ratings and the most scarce item - time. Once I had to set my alarm for 8 am on a Sunday just to take exam of our

IVAO NUMBERS pilot living in a time zone that is different from mine by twelve hours.

For all of the three groups mentioned above, it is very important to give a quick feedback on all kinds of questions and issues from pilots - in our company users receive a response no later than 24 hours but usually you will have an answer no more than a couple of hours.

People feel a positive attitude and thus help us to build a friendly community of aviation enthusiasts. The company is developing together with our pilots and 350+ accounts registered during nine months - it is a kind of credit of trust from our virtual airline pilots.

Mikhail Idelchik CEO Aeroflot VA (AFL) Event Coordinator - Russia va-aeroflot.su [442121]

IVAO NUMBERS (until December 1st)

Active members Pilots: 24,423 Students: 20,777 PP: 2,193 SPP: 761 CP: 623 Higher: 69

ATC: 15,378 Students: 13,235 ADC: 1,235 APC: 502 ACC: 363 Higher: 43

Other comparison FS3 + AS3: 2,977 PP + ADC: 459

STAFF VACANCIES

SPP + APC: 138 CP + ACC: 188 Higher than CP + Higher than ACC: 24

Senior Staff PHP / Web (Server Side) Developer

Non related numbers - Awards

http://forum.ivao.aero/index.php?topic=269567.0

Great Division User: 1,204

Web (Front-end/client-side) Developer

Documentation: 468

http://forum.ivao.aero/index.php?topic=269569.0

Division Spirit: 1,039

FA / AFA Position

Division IFR Tour: 24,658

http://forum.ivao.aero/index.php?topic=274971.0

World Tour 1: 3,934

DECEMBER 2015

Virtual Sky 27

Virtual Sky

DECEMBER 2015