Hey Everyone,
Saw this video on YT today....
https://youtu.be/n9IJ9ijmPCQ
John
I've always been confused with as niche as this hobby is why IVAO and VATSIM don't join forces...we'd have much better overall coverage and they are both free services.
Hey Jason,
I totally agree! It would be much better, even if they stay separate, but both had software that would work together.... ;D
John
They have two complete distinct personalities. I will tell you I don't fly VATSIM anymore. As real as it gets taken to a whole new level that isn't very inviting to newcomers, or old-timers that don't have the time to live at the ATP level in their sim flying. IVAO has always been more inviting, but focused on the Med and the Middle East and predominately manned by English as a second language controllers - ironically like real-life.
My 2 cents
Just sharing my own experience...
If memory serves (And the older I get, the memory servers are getting more forgetful..), I recall that IVAO was spawned from old members of VATSIM that were growing tired of the toxic environment.
Admittedly, I tried VATSIM years ago and was put off by the toxicity when flying online. I only returned recently because of a new-found interest in streaming and trying to make my stream more entertaining and robust.
A good friend of mine recently got his certifications on VATSIM (He's graduated to Center in the Houston area... He is also my former boss in real life. If you want to talk to a super-professional controller, fly in the Houston area...)
I mused aloud one day about what he had to go through to get his certifications and how that squares with controlling pilots that don't understand the difference between VFR and IFR.
Needless to say there is a tremendous amount of study, practical app & OJT required just to start as a ground controller. Lather, rinse, repeat all the way to a Center controller and you have someone who has quite literally completed an intense training program!
Enter a 13-year-old "pilot" who has just received a brand new computer for Christmas, and a simulator package like MSFS2020 (or X-Box)
So now you have a very experienced controller talking to a "pilot" who thinks he knows everything.
There's literally no certification requirements for the pilot, and TONS of requirements for the controller. Mix that hot mess together and you have a recipe for disaster.
In my experience it all boils down to mutual respect. I've heard conversations on VATSIM that would quite literally get a pilot's ticket revoked for life if it were real.
When I fly I make mistakes. LOTS of mistakes. But as long as you communicate effectively with the controllers, they are more than happy to work with you and make it a teaching moment.
I'm not above learning. In fact, I've landed jobs where I was clearly not qualified, but I make a note in every interview to state "...there is always someone smarter than me, always someone to learn from."
Humility and self-awareness goes a long way. I thoroughly enjoy flying on VATSIM because of that one simple rule: I'm not the smartest pilot in the air. That distinction goes to pilots like Captain Sullenberger and company.