Evan Reiter

The VATSIM Pilot Training Department has announced they are advancing the timeline for the removal of our status as an Authorized Training Organization (ATO). As of 0000z on August 18, the Pilot Ratings Program will no longer be considered an active ATO and VATSIM pilot certifications will no longer be issued. It is likely the change in timeline is designed to align the PTD changes with the upcoming launch of Microsoft Flight Simulator. Reminder, as part of the re-alignment, existing P-ratings will be grandfathered as follows: Existing P1 ratings will be revoked Existing P2 and P3 ratings will become P1 ratings Existing P4 and P5 ratings will become P2 ratings Pilots have the option of completing additional training to receive the new P3, P4, and P5 ratings So, if you're looking to get your P2 in the new system, you have just under a month to complete the requisite PRP flights (VFR 1-6, IFR 1-5). Make sure you complete them at least a few days before the deadline so we have time to process your rating before the changes come into effect. Meanwhile, we are continuing to build Wings Over New England, which is on track to replace the PRP on August 18. For more information on WINGS:

Nice!

In the July Logan Informer, we announced that the Pilot Ratings Program will become Wings Over New England on September 1. As part of the new WINGS program, pilots will get a great tour of the New England region while getting an incredible series of training-oriented challenges designed to help teach flying within the ATC system on VATSIM. We're asking members to share their feedback on the existing program and identify anything they would like to see changed when Wings Over New England launches in September. More than just a name change, the release on September 1 will also include a full review of existing content, an improved depiction of pilot certificates, four new IFR flights, and changes to the current flight to align with recent real-world navigation aid changes. For more information on the changes and to share your feedback and input:

What is Tea Party Poker? Tea Party Poker is a fun game that gives pilots a chance to win some some terrific prizes from our event sponsors! While there is absolutely no requirement to participate in Poker, it's become an annual tradition that many of the pilots take part in. If you choose to participate in Tea Party Poker: Each time you land at a Class B, C, or D airport inside ZBW, send BOS_PK_CTR a private message and you'll get a reply with one virtual 1 poker card (if the airport you land at is staffed, you'll get 2 poker cards). You have to fly to airports that are at least 50nm apart (straight-line distance). Once you obtain 5 cards, you can keep flying, discarding and picking up new cards to help better your hand. The pilot with the best hand at the end of the event wins, and has their pick of available prizes. The full set of rules is listed below. Tea Party Sponsors We're excited to work with a number of great developers from the community to offer prizes to participants of Tea Party Poker. The first-place participant will have the choice of available prizes while each subsequent winner will be able to choose from remaining items. Prizes Tea Party prizes include: FlightBeam: $30 Gift Card Honeycomb: Yoke and Throttle (ships in September) Just Flight: Product of User's Choice LatinVFR: Product of User's Choice Orbx: Product of User's Choice TFDi Design: Boeing 717, PACX, 12-month smartCARS Premium subscription Thrustmaster: Officer Pack Airbus Edition (A320 Throttle + Stick) The prizes will be available to Tea Party Poker pilots and the air traffic controllers who participate in the event. We are grateful to the sponsors above who have donated these prizes to the community! Rules All pilots who choose to participate in this competition are agreeing to abide by the rules below. The competition rules may be modified for clarity or other reasons without prior notification to participants. Please refer to this page for any updates. These rules are current as of August 11, 2020. The Events Coordinator shall have final say in all questions or disputes regarding this competition, and will be responsible for determining the winners. Rule changes for the 2020 event: Pilots will receive two virtual poker cards if their landing is at an airport other than KBOS that is staffed by a Tower controller (or just one card if it's KBOS or staffed "top-down" by an overlying Approach or Center controller). To be eligible, flights must be at least 50nm in length. (Last year, there was a "no intra-TRACON flight" rule that we thought could be simplified with this change.) Winning pilots must respond to their notification/prize selection email within 48 hours, or forfeit their priority for prize selection. Minor formatting changes to improve readability. The full rules governing the contest are: Event Duration: The poker game starts at 4:00pm ET on Saturday, August 8 and ends at 11:00pm ET (2000z to 0300z). How To Play: A pilot is eligible to draw virtual poker cards by completing any Eligible Flight during the event. At the conclusion of a flight, a pilot may contact the designated event official (BOS_PK_CTR) via private message (PM) to obtain the poker card(s). The event official will respond via private message advising the pilot of the cards they have received. When contacting BOS_PK_CTR to obtain a card, your PM should include: Flight origin and destination. VATSIM CID and email address (first message only). Pilots will receive: First drawing: two poker cards. Subsequent drawings: Two poker cards, if the landing is at an airport other than KBOS that is staffed by a Tower controller. One poker card, if the landing is at an airport staffed "top down" by an Approach or Center controller only, or if the landing is at KBOS. Notification of Winners, Prize Priority: By entering the contest and providing your email address to BOS_PK_CTR, you consent to Boston Virtual ARTCC emailing you should you be a winner. (If you are not a winner, we won't contact you, nor will we retain your contact information beyond the conclusion of the event.) Winners will be notified at the email address provided within 14 days of the end of the competition and will be able to choose from the list of prizes available in order of their poker hand. Winners must respond to their prize notification email within 48 hours to confirm their priority and select a prize. Winners who do not respond within 48 hours will lose their priority to select a prize, but may still be eligible for any remaining prizes at the time they reply to the email. How To Win: The pilots with the strongest poker hands at the conclusion of the event will be the winners. The number of possible winners will be equal to the number of pilot prizes available. Pilots must hold a full hand (5 cards) in order to win; therefore, pilots must complete, at a minimum, 4 eligible flights to qualify. Winning pilots will be allowed to select from a variety of prizes in order based on the strength of their respective poker hands: Eligible Flights: An Eligible Flight is any flight that terminates in a full-stop landing at a towered airport (controlled by Tower, Approach, or Center) within Boston ARTCC (ZBW) during the scheduled event times and complies with the restrictions below. Flights that originate outside ZBW airspace, and flights that originate before the start of the event, may be considered eligible provided they comply with the restrictions below. If a pilot is not certain whether or not a flight will be eligible, they should contact the designated event official (BOS_PK_CTR) via private message prior to departure. The flight must be between airports that are at least 50nm apart (by straight-line distance). The destination must be a towered airport (surrounded by Class B, C, or D airspace). The pilot must remain connected to the VATSIM network for the duration of the flight. VFR pilots must file a Flight Plan prior to departure that includes, at a minimum, their aircraft type, origin, and destination. The event ends promptly at 11:00pm ET (0300z) and any flights that conclude after this time will not receive a card. Discarding: Pilots who hold a full hand (5 cards) may try to better their hands throughout the stated event times by discarding an undesired card and then flying another flight. Pilots wishing to do this should advise the designated event official (BOS_PK_CTR) of the card they would like to discard before departing on an additional flight. Designated Event Official (BOS_PK_CTR): Issuing and tracking of pilot cards will be conducted by a designated event official. Cards that each pilot has in their "possession" will remain unknown to all other pilots until the event is complete. A pilot may verify their card holdings with the designated event official via private message. All replies to card verification requests will be returned via private message. Number of Decks: The competition will use a minimum of one deck of cards (52 cards) to start with, and the cards will be issued at random. Once this deck has been exhausted, a new deck will be added. Cards that are discarded will be placed back into the pool of available cards. Duplicate Cards: It is possible that a pilot may mistakenly receive a duplicate card during the event. If this happens, it is the pilot's responsibility to notify the designated event official (BOS_PK_CTR) as soon as possible. Hands containing duplicate cards are considered "illegal" poker hands and will not be eligible to win. Tracking of Poker Hands: Poker hands will be tied to a pilot's VATSIM CID, not their name or callsign. Exchanging of Cards: Trading, exchanging or transferring of cards between or among pilots will not be allowed at any time during the event. Withdrawal: A pilot wishing to withdraw from the game must notify the designated event official (BOS_PK_CTR) by private message, or if unavailable, one of the BVA controllers staffing a position. The pilot's cards will be returned to the deck(s) and made available to other competitors to collect. Once a pilot has withdrawn, they may not attempt to re-enter the competition. Shared Cockpit Flights: Cards are issued to flights, not pilots. Participants who choose to fly together in the same aircraft (i.e., shared cockpit flying) will be considered as a single flight and receive one set of cards. For the purposes of the competition, the name and CID of the pilot who messaged BOS_PK_CTR will be considered the pilot who is participating in the competition. Disqualification: Pilots who are disqualified will not be allowed to re-enter the competition. The Events Coordinator will have the final say in any disputes regarding pilot disqualification. A pilot may be disqualified from the competition for: Failure to comply with VATSIM COC. Refusal to comply with ATC instructions. Attempting to cheat or circumvent the competition rules. Providing false/misleading information to the event official. Disclaimer In no way should this competition be seen as a promotion or simulation of gambling. There is no purchase necessary to play or win. Gambling is not endorsed by Boston Virtual ARTCC or any of its affiliates, including VATUSA, VATSIM, and the event sponsors.

Taylor - nice! Congrats. Jay - *facepalm*

Congratulations to Bradley Clinton (CT), who completed his Class B Tower OTS today. Now he'll be able to work more than just the Connecticut airport that's named after him. Typically one of the most difficult exams to pass, this new certification allows him to wreak havoc on pilots work Boston Tower and eventually to start training to crunch metal in the air, not just on the ground for radar/Approach work. I threw everything at him, from GDPs at KJFK to TCAS RA go arounds so we at least know he'll be ready to handle the next ZNY event, even if @Austin Cirulli is working A90.

CongratsTM.

Read more about Boston Tea Party 2020 and other community news in the July Logan Informer.

We made the decision not to include it in the package because it's not a realistic/real-world airplane. Although I know several people choose to fly it on VATSIM, the general model for FLAI has been to include only real-world callsigns, aircraft, liveries, etc. For example, the team regularly removes airlines that are no longer in operation. I also believe they had trouble finding a low poly Concorde model that could have been used as part of the package. Generally, if we are going to add a model to FLAi, it can't be one that you would fly in the sim; it needs to be a low poly model to avoid negatively impacting frames.

He'd better watch it, or he'll find out not all Canadians are as nice as we're cracked up to be. Oops, sorry, did I say that out loud? Welcome MF!

Nice!

We generally don't staff KBOS unless it's advertised as part of the event. Because so many network pilots fly jetliners, it's hard to attract enough traffic at airports like PVD, MHT, and BDL when there is also top-down coverage at KBOS. Of course, as Alfonso says, there will typically be enough coverage available at KBOS, from either Center or Boston Approach, so you can complete PRP flights requiring Class B clearances. Where possible, we always recommend doing PRP flights in and around the controlled airports, even if they deviate from the original scripts. Of course, there's no other place to do the KBOS VFR helicopter procedures. But PRP VFR 5 would certainly be possible (we would probably accept something like PVD to MHT, with a stop at an uncontrolled along the way). And, many of the PRP IFR flights, including IFR 1-4, could easily be adapted for this airspace.

Boston Virtual ARTCC is proud to announce the return of Ground School: focused, 1-hour training seminars designed to offer discussion around common virtual aviation topics. The sessions, which will take place in the Member TeamSpeak and Google Meet, are open to all BVA members, with a specific focus on welcoming pilot and newer members into the community. The broader VATSIM pilot community will also be invited to join. Ground School topics include VFR Procedures, Weather, RNAV, Radio Communications, Holds, and much more! The sessions will be hosted by real-world flight instructors and BVA controllers Alec Liberman and Krikor Hajian. Sessions will continue weekly on Mondays per the schedule below. Recordings of each session are available on BVA's YouTube. Please join our Member TeamSpeak at 8:30pm ET for Ground School. You can find server connection information and a detailed connection guide on our website. Once in TeamSpeak, you'll be able to access and participate in the seminar by clicking on a Google Meet link. 2020 Ground School Topics and Dates Schedule Subject to Change Radio Communications - Wednesday, July 15, 8:30pm ET (view recording) Weather - Wednesday, July 22, 8:30pm ET (view recording) VFR Procedures - Wednesday, July 29, 8:30pm ET (view recording) IFR Clearances - Monday, August 10, 8:30pm ET (view recording) Oceanic Procedures - Monday, August 17, 8:30pm ET (view recording) Holds - Monday, August 24, 8:30pm ET (view seminar) Instrument Approach Procedures (Part 1 of 2) - Monday, August 31, 8:30pm ET (view recording) Instrument Approach Procedure (Part 2 of 2) - Monday, September 7, 8:30pm ET (view recording) RNAV Procedures - Monday, September 14, 8:30pm ET (view recording) VATUSA Invitation VATSIM Invitation

Welcome!

Nice job MK! Don't let Jay's backhanded compliments bother you. We've all gotten used to them. After a while you start to like it.

Nice job Jackson! Welcome aboard.

Read more about our Member Survey and other community news in the June Logan Informer.

Looking to beef up your forum signature? VATSIM's signature indicators display your real-time connection status on the network as a controller or pilot. All you need to do type the URL below (as plain text) in your forum signature, where "CID" is your VATSIM CID: https://my.vatsim.net/indicators/<CID> For example, I would use: https://my.vatsim.net/indicators/1314720 And that would display:

Welcome!

Hi Jack! Welcome.

BVA conducts a survey of all members every two years. Covering all aspects of the community, including events, communications, air traffic control capabilities, and more, the survey helps inform our community’s decision-making. The Administration Team is asking all members, including air traffic controllers and pilots, to take 10-15 minutes to complete the survey. The results and feedback you provide help direct the community for the next two years. All members should have received the survey link via email. If you haven't yet received it, please contact [email protected] to receive the link,

Welcome!

Well done!

Wow...that's got to be pretty close to a record for getting CTR training done quickly. Well done! Enjoy.

Glad to hear you enjoyed it! It was nice for me on the ATC side to see a lineup of airplanes inbound to PWM. I don't think I've ever had to give speed restrictions and in-trail vectors on the SCOGS arrival before!