Welcome to VATSIM-UK Military

Welcome to the Military Regional Training Scheme. All the information you need for the airfields falling within the Military RTS can be found here. Use the links on the left to navigate to the relevant airport or technical info pages.

Military RTS

Welcome to the Military Section of VATSIM UK.

The Military operation on VATSIM-UK comprises three main areas. These are Military Flying, Military Aircraft Control and liaison with Civilian Air Traffic Control.

All members of the VATSIM network are free to military aircraft on line at any airfield or landing strip in the UK however to add realism to online Military Flying, these pages have been set up as a resource for those pilots and controllers who wish to replicate the Navy, Army and RAF operations in the UK.

For both pilots and controllers there are some subtle differences in the way military aircraft are both flown and controlled. The pages in the section of VATSIM-UK will hopefully give a simple introduction and explanation of some of the differences and bring realism to your online flying experience as well as providing information for the many airfields in the UK operated by HM Forces.

For aspiring Military Air Traffic Controllers, the section will provide a range of resources for training and development of your controlling skills from a Military perspective and with dedicated mentors and Instructors, as well as a comprehensive training process, you could soon find yourself controlling Tornados from RAF Marham or C-130s flying from RAF Lyneham.

Whilst there is no mentoring or training system for pilots, through close communication between air traffic control and other resources including the information on these pages, it should be easy to quickly learn how military flying differs from civilian flying as well as offering realistic opportunities for low level flights, precision approaches and formation flying.

All of our current Military documentation can be found by following the Resources link to the left.

Air traffic controllers who wish to join the Military RTS should be aware of the following from the UK Division Policy :-

3.1 : Military

Any member wishing to undertake Military Air Traffic control at any military (RAF / RN / Army) airfield must be approved by a MIL Instructor or the MIL Operations Director and will be restricted as follows :-

1. Ground/Tower Controller : must be at least S1 civilian rated
2. Zone/Approach/PAR Controller : must be at least S3 civilian rated
3. Area Radar (London Mil/Scottish Mil) : must be at least C1 civilian rated

Members will require an endorsement from the MIL RTS before they can control solo on a military position.

To progress through the grades of Military Controller, members will need to maintain their civilian ratings and civilian RTS membership as all VATSIM upgrades for controllers will be through civilian controlling and NOT military controlling.

So welcome to the Military RTS. Do take the time to read the information here and most importantly, if you are flying to or from a military aerodrome, have a look at the flying orders or information pages for that airfield – remember that flight planning is just that – planning your flight.

If you have any problems at all regarding joining the Military RTS or accessing our information please feel free to contact me by email. Military RTSM

Chris Norman VATUK10 - VATSIM-UK Military Operations Director

Our sincere thanks go to the RAF Central Air Traffic Control School, RAF Shawbury for their assistance with our Military section