VATSIM
 |
|
| Abbreviation | VATSIM |
|---|---|
| Formation | July 2001 |
| Type | Unincorporated |
| Purpose | Provide an online air traffic control and flying community for aviation enthusiasts |
|
Region served
|
Worldwide |
|
Membership
|
Private persons |
|
President
|
Kyle Ramsey |
|
Main organ
|
Board of Governors |
|
Volunteers
|
400,000 (75,000 active in the last 6 months) |
| Website | http://www.vatsim.net |
VATSIM, or Virtual Air Traffic Simulation Network, is a non-profit organization operating a dedicated, worldwide, Internet-based flight-simulation network. Users can connect to the network to either fly online as a pilot using flight simulation software such as FSX, Prepar3D or X-Plane, or direct traffic as an air traffic controller (ATC) and participate in what has been described as a close approximation of real-life aviation procedures. The organization has achieved notability for its very high level of participation and realism, that has seen it in use as part of Federal Aviation Administration funded research projects. This notability resulted in the organization being featured on the front page of The Wall Street Journal in 2006. It is considered the largest online flight simulation network in the world with over 209,000 registered members as of September 3, 2009, with hundreds of participants online at any one time.
VATSIM is one of the two main providers of flight-simulation networks that allows users to either fly online as a pilot, or direct traffic as an air traffic controller (ATC). Communications between pilots and controllers are carried out using integrated voice-over-IP or in-game text messages. Users require custom software to use the network. Through VATSIM, ordinary people have come together as a network of pilots interacting with air traffic controllers to produce a vast, organic simulation of actual air traffic.
The goal is to keep the simulation as close as possible to real-life aviation procedures, including realistic procedural standards and radio phraseology. This has made VATSIM a training aid to student pilots who lack experience at communication with air traffic control, as well as private and commercial pilots looking to enhance their skills, especially in radio communications. In achieving this the network has been highlighted as bringing more immersion to what was once a solitary exercise, events in the game are no longer just programmed into the software but are introduced by the combination of human effort and error. Networks such as VATSIM have been described as offering very strict experiences, and may achieve very high levels of standards for training and currency even for those already involved in real world flying. The network has been highlighted as being a key component in the development of the Flight Simulation as commodity software.
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