• Connecting to the Network
• Flight Planning and Requesting Clearance
• Airfield Movements
• Use of Voice on the Network
• Use of Unicom
• Hits and Tips
• How to Guides
• Further Information

Connecting to the Network

• When you first boot up FlightSim please do NOT connect on an active runway. When you are choosing your airfield within the menus please make sure that you choose a gate and not just choose the "active runway" selection. If you connect on a runway you will block it so the controller will not be able to allow any other traffic to take off or land.
• Once you have connected at a gate please do not slew about the airport to move to another stand. If you wish to swap positions then please disconnect, move, then re-connect. If you slew about an airport you could crash into another pilot aircraft and cause their Flight Simulator to restart the flight if they have crash detection on.
• Once you have landed at an airport please disconnect if you want to see a replay of your landing. SquawkBox actually updates your aircraft position during the replay so your "blip" on the radar screen will suddenly move back to the approach again. One sure way to scare the approach controller!
• Make sure you have read the manuals for SB3 and/or FSInn before you try to connect. You need to know how to change frequencies, look at controllers ATIS, start and reply to private messages and understand the difference between the different transponder modes and how to swap between them.
• When selecting a callsign you might want to use one from a real airline rather than making one up. For a list of some airlines look in our Useful Info Area. When setting your callsign within SB3/FSInn use need to use the 3 letter ICAO code in the list and not the actual callsign, eg. use "BAW123" and not "Speedbird123" or "BA123"

Flight Planning and Requesting Clearance

• In UK airspace we request that you refrain from flying "direct GPS". Our airspace is very compact and we have specific routes and altitudes that aircraft should fly depending on the direction of travel. This is especially important in the London area where the departures and arrivals for the London airports can only be separated by 1000ft in some areas. In the UK we use the airways system for airline style IFR flights. Airways are the motorways of the skies and like roads have names such as N57, N866, UN864, L9 etc. This is an easy way of describing a route as you don't need to list all the waypoints you are flying between, only the ones where you change between airways. There are several places where flight plans can be found within the community:
  • For domestic routes within UK airspace pilots should look them up in the Flightplan Database.
  • Alternatively there is a free easy to use program called UKRoute which uses the data within the SRD in a much friendlier format. The program is available from our downloads area
  • International flight plans can be obtained from website such as the VAcc SAG Flight Plan Centre or Route Finder planning services by entering in the departure and destination airport. Both of these websites will find you routes which are free of charge, although RouteFinder does have a more advanced payware subscription service that is available. Visit our links page for more information.
  • Some pilots also use software to make flight plans for them such as FSBuild (payware) or FSNavigator (also payware but allows you 20 free goes). FSNav can also be used as a moving map display and also as a FMS to control some aircrafts autopilots, prefect for freeware aircraft that do not have their own FMCs. Links can be found in our links page
• Most of the major airports in the UK utilise Standard Instrument Departures (SIDs) and Standard Terminal Arrival Routes (STARs). These are specific routes that pilots fly from the airport to reach the airways systems (SIDs) and from the airways to the airport (STARs). Charts for UK airports can be found free of charge at the AIS Website. You do need to register for this service, which is free, and if you use that link it takes you direct to the airport chart page. There are some regional airports in the UK which don't currently have SIDs or STARs and normally you will fly direct to a waypoint to join controlled airspace. If you are not sure what kind of departure or arrival to use then feel free to private message your controller who will be able to advise you accordingly.
• When you have successfully entered your route into your FMC or navigation system, you can call the controller to request your clearance. Please make sure that you read back the clearance fully to the controller so that he knows that you have heard him correctly. Also make sure that you select the initial altitude in your autopilot so that you do not climb above this and cause conflicts with other aircraft.

Airfield Movements

• When you are ready to start and engines and pushback from the stand (if required) please request it from the controller.
• As well as SID/STAR charts the AIS website has airfield charts which will show you all the stands and taxiways available. Again all free of charge from the AIS Website These are the charts that most controllers use as well so you will now be able to follow his exact instructions by looking at the charts for the correct taxiways.
• Please do not taxi or slew about the airfield without permission as you may crash into other aircraft!
• If you think you are taxing the wrong way don't be afraid to ask the controller, he will be able to see you on his radar display and advise accordingly

Use of Voice on the Network

• On VATSIM the primary form of communication is voice but this does not exclude the use of text. Text remains an important part of communication.. particularly for those who cannot use voice for personal reasons or simply hardware reasons. Before you use voice we suggest that you have a read through of our Voice Training Section. Radio communication and phraseology can differ greatly between regions and some of our phrases can be different from the standard default MS FlightSim American style phraseology.
• Make sure if you are using SB3 that you select "voice transmit and receive", "voice receive only" or "text only" in the flight plan form. Or if you are using FSInn make sure that you type in the remarks box /v for voice transmit and recieve, /r for voice receive only and /t for text only. This is very important as it adds a symbol to your "blip" on the radar screen, allowing the controller tell what your voice capabilities are.
• When using voice please listen out on the frequency before you transmit. When a controller gives an instruction to a pilot he needs to hear the pilot read it back to him/her to make sure the pilot has understood what has been said. Please do NOT interrupt as this just creates further delays for everyone.
• Remember if you are using voice, text can still be used if their frequency is very busy and you are unable to get your call out over the radio or if you are having problems understanding a controller.

Use of Unicom

• If there is no ATC in your area than you should broadcast your intentions on the unicom frequency 122.80MHz and continue on your own navigation keeping a good look out for other aircraft on your TCAS and visually
• Unicom is text only, you can not use voice so that is why you will hear a buzzing noise with SB3 when you press your PTT button.
• Please avoid using unicom as a chat channel. If you want to talk to your mates whilst your are flying along you can use a private message box or use the private voice function on SB3
• Be aware that when you start FlightSim it defaults to 122.95, remember to change it to the unicom frequency 122.80 if you intend to use it.

Hints and Tips

• When you are setting up Flight Simulator check your graphic settings are not set too high or else you may experience bad frame rates. Try a low setting to begin with and then experiment after.
• With SB3 if you are experiencing bad frame rates, try lowering the multiplayer range and the aircraft frequency updates. With FSinn you can try lowering the multiplayer range.
• If you don't understand what someone is telling you then ask. Better to be safe than sorry. Ask by private message if you wish so that it doesn't appear on the channel
• If you are very new to FlightSim then it might be worth consulting the FlightSim tutorials and practicing offline before you try your first online flight. If you unable to control your aircraft correctly you could cause problems for other pilot and controllers in your vicinity
• If you are on text and are requesting a clearance and the controller doesn't respond immediately then please be patient. Just because you can't see any other messages on text does not mean that it is quiet, the controller may be very busy on voice. If you don't receive a reply after a couple of minutes, then try sending it again
• SB3 and FSInn will show you if there is any ATC in your area. There is another program called ServInfo which shows all the pilots and controllers connected to the network in both textual and in map format. Its is a great piece of software allowing you see if you are entering a controllers airspace.
• Have a look at the main VATSIM Pilot Resource Centre which has some basics of online flying skills
• On your first few flight consider putting "newbie" in your remarks column of the flightplan, this will allow the controller see that you are new and give instructions accordingly
• When setting up FlightSim, make sure that you have "pause on task switch" turned OFF. This is very important as if you go into a menu whilst in flight fligthsim will normally pause, which is obviously not acceptable in an online environment.
• If you have a problem or any query which the controller is not able to help you with, or he may well be too busy with other traffic to give you his full attention, speak to a Supervisor. They can be found connected to the network using a callsign ending with "_SUP"
• Whilst Emergencies can be practiced online, if a controller is very busy and believes that you will be affecting other users services he may ask you to stop your emergency or disconnect from the network. This is allowed under the VATSIM regulations so please respect the controller if he asks you to cancel your emergency.

How to Guides

• How to find charts - Learn how to find the required charts for UK airports. Version 1 | Updated 11/02/09.
• How to identify airspace - Learn how to identify the different airspace types. Version 3 | Updated 01/03/09.
• How to read a missing approach procedure - Learn to read a missed approach procedure. Version 2 | 23/02/09.
• How to read a parking chart - Learn to read the parking (ground) chart for an airport. Version 2 | Updated 16/02/09.
• How to read a procedural approach chart - Learn how to read the procedural approach charts. Version 1 | Updated 22/02/09.
• How to read a SID chart - Learn how to read a SID chart. Version 6 | Updated 16/02/09.
• How to read a STAR chart - Learn how to read a STAR chart. Version 3 | Updated 16/02/09.
• How to read an aerodrome chart - Learn how to read an aerodrome chart. Version 3 | Updated 18/02/09.
• How to read a holding patten chart - Learn how to read a holding pattern chart. Version 5 | Updated 18/02/09.
• How to read a VFR entry / exit chart - Learn how to read a VFR entry/exit chart. Version 2 | Updated 18/02/09.
• How to read VFR charts - Learn how to read a VFR charts (Part 1). Version 2 | Updated 18/02/09.
• How to read VFR charts - Learn how to read a VFR charts (Part 2). Version 2 | Updated 23/02/09.
• What does that symbol mean? - Find out what the different symbols mean. Version 2 | Updated 23/02/09.

Further Information

• There is a forum available at the VATUK Website on which you can make further questions if you can not find the answer here or feel free to contact the New Pilot Coordinator using the email link on our Contact Us page.
• Most of all enjoy yourself! This a very addictive hobby and you will find that many of us are very passionate about it. There is very much a community spirit with the division and everyone is welcome to join us for a chat on the UK1 Teamspeak server. Teamspeak is voice client which we use for both controller co-ordination and also just for a chat at the end of a night's controlling or flying. Teamspeak is available as a free download from the Teamspeak Website. Once you have downloaded please enter your full name in the quick connect box and use the following IP 80.249.98.88. Please bear with us so an Server Administrator can come and get you registered so you can move about the server freely.
• VATUK runs a new pilot training night once a month in order to get new pilot connected to the network and answer any questions you may have about the software.