Evan Reiter Share Posted December 14, 2015 Boston Virtual ARTCC's Pilot Ratings Program (PRP) has just been certified as a VATSIM Authorized Training Organization, or ATO. This certification enables Boston Virtual ARTCC to grant VATSIM Pilot Ratings P3, P4, and P5. We are one of two organizations in North America authorized to issue the P5 rating, and one of only 5 ATOs across VATSIM eligible to issue it. BVA's Pilot Ratings Program is still available to all members as a self-study training program. Pilots who participate in our PRP review the material for the relevant rating online and then attempt it when ATC is available. There is no requirement to sign up or schedule a flight. Just find a night with ATC available, and ask the controller to monitor your flight. If you meet the test standards associated with the PRP flight, you'll pass the rating. Once BVA's members complete PRP VFR 1-6, they become eligible for the P3 rating from VATSIM. You can obtain the P4 rating by completing PRP IFR 1-5, and P5 by completing the entire program. There is no requirement to obtain VATSIM pilot ratings and you can still complete the PRP in its entirety without ever getting a VATSIM rating. However, members may wish to obtain the VATSIM ratings alongside our own. For any rating to be issued, a member must first obtain VATSIM's P1 rating. You can achieve this rating by completing the P1 course on the VATSIM Pilot Academy. Members who have already completed our PRP (or parts of it) and who wish to obtain the corresponding VATSIM ratings should first obtain the P1 rating through the VATSIM Pilot Academy, or from another ATO. Then, they can email [email protected] with a request to be certified for the relevant VATSIM rating. Becoming certified as one of just a few ATOs is an impressive accomplishment for our organization. We are also one of the only ATOs to offer pilot ratings with no requirement for direct pilot-instructor interaction (although that is always available through the Virtual FBO). For more information about VATSIM's Pilot Training Department, visit https://ptd.vatsim.net/. By the way, since its inception, 289 members have passed just under 1,950 total PRP ratings. Only halfway through this month, we've already issued 27 new PRP ratings. In all, there are 26 members who have the distinction of completing all 20 flights in the program: Cameron Laramee Christopher Olmstead Richard Wang Andrew Miller Mark Lemire Josh Bullen Evan Reiter Mariano Hernandez Jeremy Sizemore Dan Perrone Jeremy Valentine Nathan Brothers Chris Raabe Jamsheed Lovelace Daniel Troxel Mark Emery Bobby Watkins Cody Outten Harry Murphine Richard Irsik Robert May Jonathan Ezell Ernesto Muniz-Samalot Lou B. Jonathan Young Gabriel Ameh Evan Reiter Community Director Administration Team Link to comment
Alec Liberman Share Posted December 14, 2015 This is awesome! I've been looking for something that's actually easy and fun to complete. Also, what about the P2? Where is that offered and is it something that has to be done with the P3-5 ratings? Link to comment
Krikor Hajian Share Posted December 14, 2015 This is so awesome! Same with LN, wanted the ratings but there wasn't a great place to do it. Being a P1 already, and having completed VFR 1-4, I will definitely continue to pursue this. Yet another reason ZBW is one of the BEST ARTCC's on the network! Link to comment
Camden Bruno Share Posted December 14, 2015 Extremely excited for this, as it creates an additional incentive to complete the flights, which create fantastic and well-educated pilots in the end. Adding onto this, I think the PRP flights enable students to enjoy the experience, as they are flying on the network rather than going through training, 'book work', etc. The program gives pilots the opportunity to learn and gain their ratings while having fun (as LN said). Lastly, congrats to all of those who have completed PRP flights before this ATO status was achieved. You are bettering yourselves as pilots and having fun while doing so! Props to you and keep up the great work. what about the P2? Where is that offered and is it something that has to be done with the P3-5 ratings? The P2 is not a pre-requisite to the P3-5. The reason we chose not to add it to our program is because the P2 surrounds how to fly the plane, aerodynamics, physics, etc, which doesn't fit the PRP structure. You can view a list of ATOs who do provide the P2 rating by clicking on this link. Yet another reason ZBW is one of the BEST ARTCC's on the network! I think you mean 'yet another reason ZBW is THE best ARTCC on the network ;) Cam Bruno (BN) Community Manager Link to comment
Richard Wang Share Posted December 14, 2015 This is great news! Thank you to all those involved to make this happen. I agree with Camden that the PRPs are a TON of fun, a well-designed series of practical, hands-on lessons that is very rewarding to complete. And most importantly, the learning doesn't stop with the PRPs - they've given me the knowledge and skills to turn every online flight into a learning experience. Special shoutout to Kyle (RS), who suggested the PRPs to me when I was a lonely pilot blundering through Boston's airspace. I've never looked back since! Link to comment
Evan Reiter Author Share Posted December 15, 2015 Here's a link to the official announcement on the VATSIM forums: https://forums.vatsim.net/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=70052 Evan Reiter Community Director Administration Team Link to comment
Krikor Hajian Share Posted December 15, 2015 I think you mean 'yet another reason ZBW is THE best ARTCC on the network ;) BVA=BEST Virtual ARTCC?! Has this been the secret meaning all along?! On a serious note, I am so thrilled about this, I can't get over it. It says a lot about the dedication and commitment of the team, staff, pilots, controllers, and overall community. The VATSIM P-ratings, especially the higher ones like the 3,4,5, are really only sought after by dedicated simmers aiming for realism - this can be found here at BVA. I'm sure this will bring us more members and widen our community more, while giving existing members another thing to strive towards. I picked Boston as my ARTCC when I decided to control because it was my home airport. I could not have picked a better ARTCC, and this stresses why. Whoever came up with this idea, my hats off to ya! Link to comment
Richard Wang Share Posted December 15, 2015 I looked at the requirements for a P2 rating on VATSIM and it seems pretty similar to what's assessed on a Cape Air Virtual shared-cockpit checkride - namely flying the airplane according to recommended procedures while online with ATC. The only difference would be the requirement to hand-fly the plane from start to finish, which shouldn't be a problem in the GA planes that Cape Air uses. I don't know how much extra work this would be, but it would be a recognition of the amazing resources and support that pilots have in Cape Air Virtual. Cape Air pilots would also be able pick up VATSIM ratings P3-P5, since they are required to complete all the PRP flights as they progress through the ranks. Link to comment
Jeremy Valentine Share Posted December 15, 2015 Agree on all counts! What an outstanding achievement! While researching the Pilot Ratings on VATSIM, I thought to myself "I wonder how our PRP program would hold up to this?" This question was answered with this outstanding news! Great job by those involved behind the scenes! It's a great privilege to have such a program available to pilots. Looking forward to helping out a number of pilots who are eager to learn some of the advanced aviation techniques available in the PRP Program! Link to comment
Clive Hodson Share Posted December 15, 2015 Congrats to BVA and the members who worked to make this VATSIM ATO certification happen. It gives me more incentive to continue with the BVA PRP. So far I've completed VFR 1-4 and IFR 1-3 and I have to say that the BVA controllers have been great. I have been mentioning the BVA PRP on the forum at Virtual International Flying Club (VIFC) where I have been a member for several years and where I do my non-VATSIM flying. Just last week someone on that VIFC forum asked me how the BVA program compares with VATSIM's program. Now I have the answer for them! Link to comment
Camden Bruno Share Posted December 15, 2015 Featured on the front page of VATSIM: https://www.vatsim.net/news/boston-virtual-artcc-authorized-training-organization Cam Bruno (BN) Community Manager Link to comment
Evan Reiter Author Share Posted December 16, 2015 Today, we received 5 new member applications; normally, I get 1-2. I'm sure many more people attempted but didn't pass the entrance exam. Hopefully more to come! I looked at the requirements for a P2 rating on VATSIM and it seems pretty similar to what's assessed on a Cape Air Virtual shared-cockpit checkride - namely flying the airplane according to recommended procedures while online with ATC. Great idea! I'll reach out to the Cape Air Virtual administration to see if they are interested in offering the P2 rating as part of BVA. Evan Reiter Community Director Administration Team Link to comment
