[30MAR 11z - 23z] Cross the Pond Westbound 2019

[Randy Tyndall 1087023]

NO... There are no slots left until EIDW opens at 1930Z. It's not cool. It is extremely upsetting that news of the event and process it virtually nowhere to be found on the VATSIM Forums, the FIRST place information should be disseminated.

 

Posting on other Social Media is fine and understand, but the PREMIER site for info SHOULD BE VATSIM!!!!

 

Randy

[Matthew Cianfarani]

Last hour changes, like a lowcost company pilot planning...

 

Sigh...

So the big complaint last year is that the site (Well, SSO) was crashing. We spent a month fixing that up and for the most part things just went really smooth

But because we requested an extra few hours to push some additional code this is an issue?

 

And yeah.. This is absolutely like a lowcost company. I have team members along with myself personally footing the bill for the infrastructure here. The hundreds of hours of code? Also done for free. .

[Matthew Cianfarani]

NO... There are no slots left until EIDW opens at 1930Z. It's not cool. It is extremely upsetting that news of the event and process it virtually nowhere to be found on the VATSIM Forums, the FIRST place information should be disseminated.

 

Posting on other Social Media is fine and understand, but the PREMIER site for info SHOULD BE VATSIM!!!!

 

Randy

 

Second round of slots just opened - Did you grab one?

[Prince Johnson]

Got mine -- desired city-pair (pushing for the longest run):

 

 

-------------//

 

Flight Data

 

Flight Number

FDX978

 

 

Departure Time

11:17:00Z

 

Departure

Hamburg (EDDH/HAM)

 

Arrival

Vancouver International (CYVR/YVR)

 

Flight Level

FL330

 

Route

No routing information available yet. Check back 6-12 hours before the event.

 

 

NAT Track

 

 

------------------ //

 

Enjoy the event ladies/gents and keep the discussion respectful.

Edited March 30, 2019 at 03:03 PM by Guest

[Matthew Cianfarani]

Looks like an awesome flight, Prince! Enjoy!

[Prince Johnson]

Looks like an awesome flight, Prince! Enjoy!

 

Thank you, sir! I sure will enjoy this in the T7

Edited March 30, 2019 at 03:04 PM by Guest

[Randy Tyndall 1087023]

NO... There are no slots left until EIDW opens at 1930Z. It's not cool. It is extremely upsetting that news of the event and process it virtually nowhere to be found on the VATSIM Forums, the FIRST place information should be disseminated.

 

Posting on other Social Media is fine and understand, but the PREMIER site for info SHOULD BE VATSIM!!!!

 

Randy

 

Second round of slots just opened - Did you grab one?

 

Yeah, I got Dublin to Dulles. And Matthew, I am not upset with the process. I am UPSET with where the INFORMATION about the event was disseminated. Until I made my post well above, there was absolutely no NEWS or UPDATES or INFORMATION about the SIGNATURE event of VATSIM posted ANYWHERE on the VATSIM Forums...you know, the organization we ALL belong to!!!!

 

I come to these forums for information, not Facebook, not Twitter, not Instagram. I don't belong to the VATSIM Facebook group. Why? I use Facebook to stay in touch with my kids in Oklahoma, not be inundated with frivolous posts about Hillary this or Trump that or look what I did when I landed at Tinbuktu!!!! That's "Social Media" VATSIM is VATSIM and should be the "Go To" place for information ABOUT VATSIM.

 

Randy

[Juan Perez]

Last hour changes, like a lowcost company pilot planning...

 

Sigh...

So the big complaint last year is that the site (Well, SSO) was crashing. We spent a month fixing that up and for the most part things just went really smooth

But because we requested an extra few hours to push some additional code this is an issue?

 

And yeah.. This is absolutely like a lowcost company. I have team members along with myself personally footing the bill for the infrastructure here. The hundreds of hours of code? Also done for free. .

 

 

Matthew my comentary was in ironic mode. I know perfectly how many hours take all of this needed, this great fliying net and particulary a big event like this. I always will respect, appreciate, and enjoy all your work, and I will never complain about anything.

[Matthew Cianfarani]

Thank you, Juan!

[Gunnar Lindahl]

...

 

Randy

 

Go and lie in a dark room for a few hours. Posts like yours are why I'm tempted to pull this event in October - I'm serious. I'm sick and tired of how, every single time, the team (who have real world jobs and other VATSIM duties too) get torn apart from some issue or other. It's just an event.

 

Next time, I'm sure the team will ensure the updated time is put in the forum post. Now let's move on.

[Randy Tyndall 1087023]

No Gunnar, you don't seem to get it. We don't belong to Facebook. We don't belong to Twitter. We belong to VATSIM and yet VATSIM is entirely devoid of information about the staggered booking release times.

 

Randy

[Marin Yang]

Go and lie in a dark room for a few hours. Posts like yours are why I'm tempted to pull this event in October - I'm serious. I'm sick and tired of how, every single time, the team (who have real world jobs and other VATSIM duties to

Edited March 24, 2019 at 06:24 PM by Guest

[Randy Tyndall 1087023]

And to everyone on the CTP planning group...and to our esteemed President. I, more than anyone, appreciate the voluntary planning activities that go on behind the scene. I know the effort is monumental. I know the team works hard. If information about the event had been posted in the VATSIM forums, where in my opinion should be the FIRST place it should go, I would have known beforehand what the "plan" was and not have been so surprised to see absolutely no Dublin slots available at 1905Z. I would not have been shocked and I would have had no need to come here and post until I made my "happy" post about getting a slot.

 

Randy

[Matthew Cianfarani]

Amsterdam slots booked within 62 seconds - Awesome to see the enthusiasm!

[Carson Murphy]

Amsterdam slots booked within 62 seconds - Awesome to see the enthusiasm!

Yup, and now I need a new F5 key.

 

I like this new system. My only constructive criticism is to allow somebody to keep a slot until they have locked in a new one. For example, I booked a slot from Oslo because I was worried I wouldn't get an Amsterdam slot. i had to drop the slot and risk not getting one at all in order to try to get an Amsterdam slot. Maybe setup the system so that your slot automatically drops when you book a new one? If that makes sense?

[Matthew Bartels]

Amsterdam slots booked within 62 seconds - Awesome to see the enthusiasm!

Yup, and now I need a new F5 key.

 

I like this new system. My only constructive criticism is to allow somebody to keep a slot until they have locked in a new one. For example, I booked a slot from Oslo because I was worried I wouldn't get an Amsterdam slot. i had to drop the slot and risk not getting one at all in order to try to get an Amsterdam slot. Maybe setup the system so that your slot automatically drops when you book a new one? If that makes sense?

 

That's the risk of booking one to just have one vs waiting for your preferred airport to open up. The price you pay for squatting on a slot

[Jean-Francois Desrosiers]

I find very interesting and quite unfair for some timezones the way booking was designed this year. If I had one suggestion to make for next edition is the following:

 

Why not, instead of having one afternoon of bookings that get taken within seconds, make a lottery open to all members. Members that want to participate in the event each get an equal chance of getting a slot, randomly [Mod - Happy Thoughts]igned by the system. If members drop their slot or refuse the booking, there's a second round, and then an open booking.

 

If I may also add: would it be possible to advertise booking information ahead of the booking themselves on the CTP website? I logged into the website just earlier this week to not find any info as to when or how bookings would take place.

 

Anyhow, you'll see me on as WJA4BG from Gatwick to Pearson flying the QW 789.

 

Looking forward to participating to my first event as a pilot. If my sim crashes, you guys can count on me to help on Oceanic

[Gunnar Lindahl]

Randy

 

Sent you an email. Hope it reaches you.

 

Thanks to the team for a great effort - much smoother than October and looks like we sold out in record time again. See you all next week.

[Randy Tyndall 1087023]

Gunnar,

 

I did get your email. I am [Mod - Happy Thoughts]uming you got mine as well which prompted your reply. I will take your email to heart, but still stand by my words, and concede they have been stronger than they needed to be, but such is my p[Mod - Happy Thoughts]ion for VATSIM. The message, though, is still appropriate. Advertise, Announce, Inform on VATSIM first and foremost in our forums, then expand to "social media". Social Media should never be our main source of information...the website forums should be and sadly, are not. There are so many "sources" for VATSIM info that the chance of missing something...like a postponed booking time to allow for code work and staggered bookings to help alleviate site overload...are too great unless the VATSIM Forums are first and foremost and all other "media" are afterthoughts to expand our reach. Much to my chagrin, Facebook appears to be where our "Information Stream" is now focused and that saddens me.

 

I hope you and the CTP Team realize and understood that I was not ever questioning the booking process, the planning, the extraordinary actions of a superb team of volunteers. I questioned how that team let us, the pilots of the line at the bottom of the rung, know "what was going on".

 

I have had a great affinity for VATSIM for over 11 years and defend the site strongly in ways you will never know, though perhaps it doesn't need it. But in a world where IVAO exists and POSCON may soon exist, as well as FSHost and many others, I shudder to think the world's greatest online virtual simulation network could become "less".

 

And yes, I got my EIDW-KIAD slot. See you all next Saturday.

 

Randy

[Karl-Tonis Lepp]

I have a question regarding flights into ORD.

 

I managed to grab a slot OSL-ORD, but as we all know the scenery in P3D/FSX is severly lacking there (a few runways to be exact). The only up-to-date scenery for KORD is in X-Plane.

 

How is ORD preparing (no pun intended) to welcome the Prepar3d crowd into their airport?

 

Seeing as ORD has been a destination for a few good years already I'm sure there is some clever system which I am not aware of.

 

Or maybe by some miracle DD will release their rendition before the event...

[Vladimir Bykov 1259564]

Hellow, everyone!

 

It's my first time to try Trans-Atlantic flight under control.

I understand that I can't no longer book a flight ... Can I make a flight from ENGM to CYVR without booking?

[Don Desfosse]

Yes. You'll need to monitor the forums the night before to get the non-slot track, and plan your flight accordingly. And although it doesn't often happen, we also tell all non-slot people to expect significant (i.e. 1+ hour) delays and plan accordingly!

[Randy Tyndall 1087023]

I have a slot for EIDW to KIAD and I have a question. This is not my first or second or even third CTP, although I could not for scheduling reasons fly in the last two. I recall from those previous ones that Sel-Cal was entered during booking, but I don't recall it being there this time, nor do I see it in the Pilot Dashboard where my callsign shows. Will controllers get Sel-Cal from my pilot client (I will be using the Alpha test version of the Swift Client for FS2004)?

 

Also, I am "entertaining" using the Concorde this year, something I have never done...but flown a lot in other crossings. In previous CTP's I participated in there was/were track(s) set aside specifically for the supersonics that mimicked the old tracks Concorde used if I recall correctly. I also seem to recall at booking you had to indicate you would be flying the Concorde, but my present booking did not require an airframe entry at all.

 

If I do decide to use the Concorde...and I am still "on the fence" about that, how will the routing team "know" I plan to use the Concorde and won't need the traditional NATS routing ([Mod - Happy Thoughts]uming there will be special tracks for the Concorde) during the routing meeting the night before?

 

Randy

[1275389]

If I do decide to use the Concorde...and I am still "on the fence" about that, how will the routing team "know" I plan to use the Concorde and won't need the traditional NATS routing ([Mod - Happy Thoughts]uming there will be special tracks for the Concorde) during the routing meeting the night before?y

Historically, people using the Concorde during CTP have either flown historic tracks (SM or SO for westbound) or a random routing. Since they're up somewhere above everyone else, their route really doesn't matter. I would honestly suggest dropping your booking if you intend on flying the Concorde as flying it essentially forces you off any of the prescribed routes/flows (which is the point of bookings). Maybe just try to leave somewhere a little after the start of the event and aim to arrive when US/CAN controllers start staffing up.

[Randy Tyndall 1087023]

Ahhh! Hadn't thought of that. Then I could leave from EGLL, which I presume there will be at least Center staffing for and still have wall-to-wall ATC.

 

Thanks Josh.

 

If I decide to go that route I will post my booking cancellation here of course...not on Facebook

 

Randy