introducing PilotEdge, professional ATC for flight simulators

[coma24]

My name is Keith Smith, I'm the Founder of PilotEdge, a new online service that provides real-time ATC for flight simulators.

I noticed a good number of referrals to our web site coming from this forum so I thought I'd introduce myself and provide some background about the service, explain where it shines, what it's NOT good for, and answer any questions that anyone might have.

My background, very briefly, starts as a 10yr old who discovered aviation and computing at roughly the same time, starting with a Commodore 64 and SubLogic FSII.  I have to think I'm not the only person here who knows what those are I learned to fly by using sims, but it wasn't until my early 20's that I started taking flying lessons. I discovered VATSIM after a 4yr break during the training. It was a great resource for getting back in the saddle and working on my comms. I completed my PPL and went on to obtain an instrument rating. I currently fly (and very much enjoy) a Lancair 360 out of Lincoln Park (N07) in northern NJ.

VATSIM wasn't without its issues, but on a good day, if you knew how to use it, knew the right controllers and all the planets aligned, you could have a meaningful training experience. I tried for 7 years (without success) to recruit real world pilots to that network and during that time was able to recruit precisely _0_ people, despite receiving thunderous applause at presentation after presentation, and demo after demo to rooms full of pilots.  Their experience when they went home to try it simply didn't mirror what we showed during the demo (which was stock with great pilots and controllers, of course).

So, I started thinking about building a new, commercial-grade network which would overcome the known limitations of VATSIM, namely:
- the lack of consistent, predictable presence of ATC
- the lack of consistent, predictable quality of ATC
- a radio system that in no way mirrors the operation of a real world radio in terms of frequency usage and non-towered operations
- too wide of range of skill and interest level among the pilots
- lack of traffic density as a result of the global coverage and not enough pilots to fill those skies (outside of a handful of scheduled events each year)

As a result, PilotEdge was launched to the public just over 2 months ago on Oct 1, 2011. It offers guaranteed ATC presence and quality, 15 hours a day, 7 days a week in the published coverage area (currently the Los Angeles ARTCC, with roughly 100 public use airports). This will expand to include the Oakland ARTCC in the coming months. There are no plans to expand the public network beyond that point unless the traffic density supports it.

The ATC presence is guaranteed by compensating the controllers for their time and using a robust scheduling system. The ATC quality is guaranteed because unlike other networks, we are able to pick and choose who is allowed to control on the network, and train them to our exacting standards.

The network is based on voice usage 100% of the time, there are no text transmissions (outside of Private Messages which are used for technical support from time to time). The radio system was built completely from scratch and closely models the operation of a real world radio:
- there is no 'controller list' showing you who's online
- you dial the frequency for the facility you're trying to reach using real world publications (be it a clearance delivery, ground, tower, TRACON, or enroute facility). You can even call on the published approach frequencies for flight following.
- if you are out of range from a given controller or another pilot, you won't hear them. The range is based on your altitude and the altitude of the other pilot or the altitude of ATC's transmitter. We have modeled the location AND altitude of all of the radio transmitters within the Los Angeles ARTCC, including the one near the JLI which is located on a 4-5k MSL mountain top

On a few occasions in the early days, we neglected to swap pilots to the appropriate frequencies during their flights and lost communication with them as they descend to lower altitudes. We resorted to relaying messages to them via other airborne aircraft which were cruising in the flight levels and were able to reach them on the same frequency, even though we couldn't!

Also, you can enjoy 100% voice communications at the non-towered airports. You'll hear other aircraft if they're within range, and on the same frequency. That means than down low, you'll probably only hear aircraft at your airport, but once you reach 1000ft or so, you'll hear traffic at more distant airports. We calcuate all of this every 3 seconds or so.

The traffic density issue is solved in two ways. For one, the coverage area is smaller (packing what would've been a global level of traffic into a smaller area), and we augment the live traffic with previously recorded VFR aircraft (drones) which fly 24/7.  As of now, there are ~550 of these aircraft flying around northern and southern California. These are VFR aircraft that fly only in Class E/G airspace (where ATC communication is not required). Drone operations range from helicopter tours through the Grand Canyon, to VFR pattern work, air work (steeps turns, slow flight, stalls, simulated engine out), cross country flights and even military operations (many of which are a hoot to watch or follow, I gotta tell ya!). These are NOT computer-generated or AI flights. These are flights that were recorded by a real person and are being played back 24/7 through a custom utility that we built for the network.

Now, all of these benefits come with two sacrifices:
1) the network is not free. Remember, the controllers are paid to be there. The upside is that the cover charge 'keeps away the kiddies'.

2) the coverage area is not global...it's not even national (nor is it ever likely to be). We support the Los Angeles ARTCC (ZLA) right now and will add the Oakland ARTCC (ZOA) soon. ZLA has roughly 100 public use airports, as does ZOA.  When all is said and done, our coverage area will be approximately 600x400nm, allowing for a 90 minute flight in a 737, which we think is sufficient for most operations, particularly since the enroute phase of flight offers little in the way of educational or even entertainment value.

So, who is this for? If you're a student pilot, instrument student or commercial training outfit (flight school or sim center), the benefits of this system should be quite obvious.

However, we think it might also attract the attention of the discerning sim enthusiast who sees value in having quality ATC every single time they fly, even if it means flying in a more restricted area, and is willing to pay a modest amount per month for it $19.95/mth, or less if you're flying with a partner VA, a list of which will soon be forthcoming on the site).

This network is NOT for you if you require global coverage, or if ATC interaction is not an important aspect of your flying, or if VATSIM is meeting 100% of your needs. I suspect that as cockpit builders, the service we offer WILL be of value to you, so I'm eager to see the reaction!

Check out the site, there is a 2 week free trial (we ask for credit card info for a number of reasons, but you will not be charged until the end of the trial) for anyone who wants to give it a shot.

The supported platforms are FS 2004, FSX, Prepar3d (unofficially), and X-Plane 9/10. You can install the FSX client on another machine but it's not recommended at this time. We'll be releasing a modified version of the client which lends itself to better execution across the network fairly soon. Right now, the installer ships with the incorrect version of SimConnect, you'll need to grab the FSX SP2 SimConnect installer (I can post a link if needed) if you do plan to run the PE client on a machine other than the one where FSX is running.

We also send position updates for aircraft at 5Hz, so the fidelity is considerably improved over what is available on other systems. We also send light, gear and power settings across the network, so  you can actually see when aircraft switch on their strobes and landing lights prior to takeoff, etc.

Again, I'm happy to answer any and all questions and look forward to hearing your reactions to the service. It's not for everyone, but if you're looking for the next level of ATC interaction, there is really nothing out there that offers what we have, and certainly nothing that can be used on a commercial basis.

[XOrionFE]

Welcome Keith!

Guys...I have only done one flight on Pilot Edge so far but I must say it really felt like the real deal to me.   Nothing different in procedure from real flying (based on my GA flying).   You should check it out on the trial.     Worth every penny to spend the $20/mo.    Very small price to pay considering what we have wrapped up in our sims.   Without good ATC it is just not as realistic and with PE it is just like reality.   Small geography served for sure but better because amount of traffic and you can count on the times of operation for all ATC functions.    But dont take my word for it...try it yourselves.

Scott

[rprather]

I concur... definitely worth it to be able to make a full flight under full ATC all the way from clearance to landing and taxi to parking. Especially when you want to pop online for a quick flight. I spoke with Keith for a while and I was quite impressed with the functionality they've built into the system. The radio model is great.... just tune a frequency, and any pilot or controller within line of sight who's on the same frequency will hear you.

Check out their demo videos:

http://www.pilotedge.net/pages/introduction-videos

Robert

[jackpilot]

Assuming just one flight per week it boils down to $5 for a "real" flight.
Worth every penny considering that most of us spend more than that monthly buying irresistible stuff on EBay that ends up collecting dust on a shelf...
Jack

[coma24]

Gentlemen, I have to say, I did not expect a welcome quite this warm. Thanks for having such an open mind and being willing to consider something new and different.

I have no doubt at all about our ability to deliver a compelling and realistic experience.

Being as transparent and realistic as I can, there are two things that are a little different on PilotEdge compared to real world flying:

1) we don't (yet) have much traffic. There's ~210 people signed up for the retail service right now. On a 'good night', we see about 10 people flying at the same time. In these early days, there just aren't that many people flying online with us at the same time. Thankfully, the 'drones' provide some extra traffic and cause some extra interaction and workload by generating the traffic point outs that make the flights so interesting.

As we add commercial customers in the short term, this will change. We're working with a flight school in Florida that's going to have a lab of 10 computers for Aviation English training, and a separate lab of 5 machines for miscellaneous training tasks. We're also talking to a large university on the west coast with 37 computers in one lab, as well as a number of Frasca FTD's.

Longer term, we obviously hope to have thousands of pilots signed up for the retail service, providing round the clock traffic.

2) When you try to replace 100+ air traffic controllers with just a handful of people, certain compromises have to be made. The end result is that our controllers work a LOT of positions and frequencies.  What this means for you, the pilot, is that while you're tuned into one tower's frequency, you'll likely hear that same controller working other towers, too. This 'combining' of positions DOES happen real world (ground & tower are often combined at a single field when it's quiet, and many approach sectors are often handled by a single controller).  The effect of this is that you'll hear the CONTROLLER issuing instructions, but you won't hear the PILOT respond because the pilot is on another frequency.  Again, it does happen real world, but we scale it up to extend to multiple airports, not just multiple positions at a single airport.

I hesitate to use the word, but I really believe that the network has the potential to be something special. It's early days, but all the signs are there, and even without tons of traffic, I still think there's something to be said for a 100% voice network with guaranteed ATC. The radio doesn't have to be going at 1000mph for it to be a fun experience

Thanks again for the welcome, I'll be sticking around!

Lastly, once there are a few of you signed up (even if it's just for the trial), feel free to put together your own fly-in. You can either organize one entirely on your own, or, if you come up with a date and time, feel free to post it in our 'fly with me' forum to invite other PE members to come along...totally your choice.  If you're unfamiliar with the airspace and need some assistance in putting together a flight, just let me know what class of airplane you'll be flying, approximate airspeeds and the desired duration, and I'll put something together in a jiffy. We have some pretty terrain out here, I promise

Keith

[coma24]

Trevor, regarding the 'who is flying' applet, we don't quite have something like that yet, but we do have an XML feed that we publish with a list of the pilots that are currently online. If someone wanted to write a small php app to fetch and parse that info, I'd be happy to provide the URL for that feed.

Keith