Proper etiquette for a new pilot to just observe and listen

[Dirk Flachbart]

Hi,

I am new to VATSIM, and want to spend time just sitting and listening at airports to learn and get familiar with the procedures, before even considering to undertake my first VATSIM flight 😉. So what it is the 'correct' or 'preferred' procedure to follow here? I was going through the VATSIM Pilot Resource Center and found the following:

Quote

You can also connect to the Vatsim network and monitor communications at an airport you'd like to fly out of. The controllers online should be friendly and happy to answer any questions as traffic levels permit. As a courtesy, be sure to file a flightplan even if you're just observing. Use the observing airport in both the departure and arrival boxes, then add "NEWBIE - Observing" to the comments section.

That's exactly what I did, and a controller messaged me shortly after connecting and asked me (nicely!) if I wanted to get a clearance / fly today. He was surprised that I filed a flight plan (he did see the comments in the flightplan though) and said that usually people just connect and sit quietly and thus don't show up in his departure list.

So now I'm not sure any more if I follow the right procedure, would anyone care to clarify? Should I

• follow the Pilot Resource Center and file a flight plan after connecting, with observing airport as departure/arrival, and put in appropriate comments ?
• connect and don't file anything but just listen ?
• connect in 'Shared Cockpit / Observer' mode (I'm using vPilot) ? In one thread here in the forums it was also suggest to use a '_OBS' suffix in the callsign 

I just want to find the least disruptive way to do the observing, so what is the 'right' official way, and as a controller, which of the above do you prefer?

 

Thanks!

Dirk

 

[Jonas Helkey]

I'm not 100% in my recollection of what I did, I do believe I did it the same way as you but there's a good chance as well that I didn't in fact enter the DEP/ARR. No controller ever approached me while I was observing but then again, I didn't spend a ton of time doing it either.

I guess the controller in your case already gave the answer to the question what difference it makes: If you fill the fields out, you show up as a departure. And if it's a VFR plan with the same departure and destination, I think it's reasonable that some controllers will think you might be planning to do some pattern work as a lot of newbies like to start out that way. I think the likelihood of them actually going out of their way to contact you and offer their help to get you started, which is what that ATC was doing, probably increases with how nice they are. 🙂

I've heard controllers reach out to newbies who were observing at their airport and talk them into going up for some circles if they have the time. Don't worry about being intrusive. If the controller needs or wants to ignore you, they can do so at any time if you're just parked remotely, with or without a plan on file I guess. I do recommend filing something though, especially so you can add the remarks that you're just observing. I have never used an observer mode connection but it's point is that you are invisible to everyone on the network - you could park it on the active runway then and nobody would notice. I guess if that's what you're looking for it's always an option but I'd always prefer the way you did it. If only because you never know when you'll run into a super nice ATC with some time on their hands to prod you into taking off. 😉

Grain of salt is I'm not a controller, just taking the liberty of assuming here that what I think makes sense is also okay by them. I'm sure we'll hear from some in this thread here though anyway.

Edited January 4, 2021 at 07:12 PM by Jonas Helkey

[Robert Shearman Jr]

If you're connected as an Observer, you won't show up on any radar scope nor to other pilots.  But VAT-Spy and the ATC scope clients do show a list of connected observers, and you'll be on it.

If you file a flight plan saying you're just observing, it helps the controller understand why you're there -- at least that's my opinion.  I'm sure many would appreciate having that information so they don't have to wonder "why is this guy just sitting there doing nothing," particularly if they're not in Observer mode.  I'm sure others would say, "why are they bothering me with a flight plan that says they're not doing a flight," especially if they ARE in Observer mode.  And the same controller's reaction might be different based on whether it's a very busy day or a not-too-busy day.  But ultimately it doesn't really do any harm either way.

For me, it would be nice to know what they're up to, and if I'm busy, I'm just going to read the strip and then delete it immediately anyway.  That's just my opinion as an S2 in ZDC within VATUSA.

[Dirk Flachbart]

8 hours ago, Jonas Helkey said:

If you fill the fields out, you show up as a departure. And if it's a VFR plan with the same departure and destination, I think it's reasonable that some controllers will think you might be planning to do some pattern work as a lot of newbies like to start out that way

Ah that makes sense, and I didn't realize I can leave the departure/destination empty when filing a flight plan, so maybe that's the way to go...

Thank you very much for your thoughts on this, really appreciated!

 

Dirk

[Dirk Flachbart]

6 hours ago, Robert Shearman Jr said:

If you're connected as an Observer, you won't show up on any radar scope nor to other pilots.  But VAT-Spy and the ATC scope clients do show a list of connected observers, and you'll be on it.

Ah, so ATC controllers would still see me... Yeah that maybe makes a good point for not using observer mode but filing a flight plan with comments.

Thanks Jonas for the insights from a controller perspective, appreciated!

Dirk

 

[Torben Andersen]

I would simply logon without filing a flightplan. Then you wouldn't be seen in the different lists the controller has, but he will see you on the ground, if he is a twr or gnd controller (app and center might see you depending on the settings in Euroscope). As controller I would not happy to spend time looking in the remarks of a pilot's flightplan to find out, that you aren't going to fly. That is simply a waste of my time as controller.

regards

Torben

[Tobias Dammers]

My approach is that I won't file a flightplan when connecting as observer: being in observer mode already means "I'm just observing, please ignore me"; whether I will be flying or not is completely irrelevant, because as long as I'm an observer, it is 100% clear that no interaction is required or intended.

When I want to spectate while being visible on the network, for whatever reason (which is extremely rare), then I WILL file a flight plan, because the expectation is that when you spawn at a gate, you will at some point file a flight plan and fly, and having a flight plan that says "EHAM-EHAM just spectating, will not actually fly" makes it clear and tells the controller that they don't need to hold their breath.

[Dirk Flachbart]

3 hours ago, Tobias Dammers said:

My approach is that I won't file a flightplan when connecting as observer: being in observer mode already means "I'm just observing, please ignore me";

I guess what threw me off a bit was the wording "Connect in shared cockpit mode (observer mode)", so I wasn't sure if using this mode is even VATSIM-permissible for the purpose of just watching/listening.

Dirk

[Jonas Helkey]

1 hour ago, Dirk Flachbart said:

I guess what threw me off a bit was the wording "Connect in shared cockpit mode (observer mode)", so I wasn't sure if using this mode is even VATSIM-permissible for the purpose of just watching/listening.

Dirk

Yup, that's just what it is. It's used in shared cockpit configs where one of the two pilots connects as an observer so he doesn't show up as a target on the radar screen, causing constant proximity alarms with his other pilot. It's simply an invisibility switch.

Edited January 5, 2021 at 10:03 PM by Jonas Helkey

[Kirk Christie]

8 hours ago, Tobias Dammers said:

they don't need to hold their breath.

As a controller, I couldn't really care less if you log in and sit there and do nothing and not tell me what it is you are doing, its really none of any ones business. 

[Kylan Walters 976917]

You could also connect sitting on the ramp of a small airport outside of class bravo but close enough to the large, controlled airport you wish to listen in on. That's what I used to do.