Somewhat newbie

[Brian King]

Although I've been flying FSX for more years than I can remember, I'm recently new to VATSIM. Have done some VFR Club flying but tend to avoid ATC (which is a shame) as it is not always clear what the status is. I consult VATspy and vPilot to see which airports are staffed, but the symbols don't quite make it clear who expects what from pilots.

 

As I look at VATspy right now, the map shows no ATC at EGCC, ie no icons showing A,T or G. But there is a ring around EGCC. But the listing of controllers says that there is an Approach controller there, online right now. What does the ring mean? At the same time, at EGPH, there are three controllers on duty, but no ring around the airport.

 

Yesterday I planned a flight from EGGD. VATspy showed only an A. Hovering over that showed there was ATIS available. But on tuning in to the frequency, I was met by the FSX version of ATIS and nothing from the VATSIM Atis recorded information. On taking off I was sent a message saying I should have contacted the ATC controller (EGTT was not active). How can you contact a recorded message?! Weird.

 

I think my point is that there is no (or I haven't been able to find a) full explanation for all these new features. Where can I go to read up on all this?Thanks for any help here.

[Mats Edvin Aaro]

Welcome to VATSIM!

 

The ring around the airport is simply an indicator that there is an approach controller online. You can hover over to see the actual positions.

 

You might be overriding the VATSIM ATIS with the FSX one, I am not an FSX guy but try to scroll through the settings, or perhaps someone can help..

 

I would really recommend you check out the VATSIM Pilot Resource Centre: https://vats.im/prc.

Here you will find plenty of tutorials to help you get started. If you're more of a visual learner, AviationPro has some really good beginner (and advanced) tutorials on his Youtube channel.

 

Let us know if you have any more question!

 

All the best,