Hey Maxime...

[Boeing Skunk Works]

Did you fly during German Day on IVAO today?

Tuesdays are a great day to fly in and around Germany. I flew EGLL-EDDF. Fully staffed from London through Belgium to Frankfurt. 1900Z every Tuesday.

I was going to fly from Paderborn to Linz, but the controllers had already left at Linz.

Next Tuesday there is a controller exam at Wien, 1900Z. If you like, meet me in Frankfurt on the A pier at 1800. I'll be on stand 34. We'll fly to Vienna for the exam.

Yesterday I flew for the Swiss contoller exam to Bern, and tried to make it to Katstrup, but they closed before I arrived.

[XOrionFE]

Hey Mike,

For those of us who havent flown online, can you explain these "controller exams".   I plan on jumping online once my plane is flyable.   Was going to start on Vatsim.   

Regards,
Scott

[ian@737ng.co.uk]

hi scott.........
flying on-line (irrespective of what network you choose) will bring a whole new dimension to your flight experience.     the interaction is quite amazing.     being actually controlled is a real buzz especially when there is a controller exam or a fly-in going on.      there is going to be heavy traffic and they are going to sequence you for takeoff or approach, it's quite stimulating because you've just got to stay with the game.      and it polishes up your skills as well because you have to fly the proceedures, change frequencies, contact and monitor the controllers.  can get high pressure in a heavy traffic situations, but we love it 
personally, i never fly offline if i am by myself.   trust me, once you have tried it, you'll never look back.
IVAO or Vatsim, your choice (or be a little devil and join both  ).
regards ... ian

[Boeing Skunk Works]

It's pretty simple really. The controller is being tested for the position he is working either as an initial hire or upgrade training.

Ian is right about the traffic too. It can get very heavy and the situation is very intense many times. On a good day, there may be thirty or forty arrivals and departures per hour at a major hub. It's about as close to real life as you can get.

Places like Frankfurt, Munich, Hamburg, London, Paris, Vienna, etc, get very busy and will have controllers staffing most all positions all the way down to Clearance Delivery. Even the smaller locations will have tower, radar, and center working most of the time. Yesterday, Germany was lit up like a Christmas tree with all of the controller positions.

I used to belong to both organizations, but VATSIM is not as popular in Europe so I'm only using IVAO now. You have to learn to listen with an accent a lot of times. Some of the older guys controlling never had to learn english in school and they are sometimes difficult to understand, but the message gets through when you get used to hearing them. French controllers (young & old) are the most difficult to understand for me. I don't fly a lot of flights out of France for that reason.

A lot of pilots new to the networks have a difficult time of it if they can't fly their aircraft without the FMC, or re-program it on the fly. What you filed may not be what you actually fly for an arrival. You can hear this a lot on the radio. Departures are usually 'as filed' as long as you know which procedure to file.
I have seldom ever flown the entire STAR to an airport.

You really should try it. It's an amazing experience, and as Ian said, you'll never want to fly off-line again.
The software is easy to use and it's easy to file a flight plan. Best of all, it's free.

[XOrionFE]

Thanks guys for the explaination.  I cannot wait.   I am just in the final stages of prep for my actual instrument rating and should be taking the practical probably in January right after the holidays.    One of the exact reasons I did this was to be able to fly online and know what I am doing as well as in real life.     I cannot even imagine flying a sim without good ATC.  That would take the fun out of it for me.  Up until now I have been using Radar Contact standalone but really look forward to the online experience.   The other thing is that I have done most of my flying in the US but after seeing the Innsbruck video someone posted and hearing about the European experience with accents....I see a whole new horizon to cross and have tons of fun with.   I guess the first thing I better do is finish the cockpit to a flyable state and the second is to learn how to fly the 737!    And figure out those darn NDBs for navigation!

Thanks again.
Scott

[Themax]

It's now some time ago that I didn't flew to Germany... I can't fly a lot now because I'm in exams for 2 weeks Tuesday last exam in the morning, will be there for sure that evening !

See you there,

Maxime.

[Boeing Skunk Works]

For sure Scott you'll need an NDB at some point If you're fling in Europe. Even at London there is one used for the DVR4 departure for your initial turn out.

Max, what call sign will you use? I'm DLH775. I'll look for you on the pier.

[Themax]

DLH775, that's copied

I'll be there with my Brussels Airlines virtual callsign, BEL156

Maxime.