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Thank you to the almost 200 BVA members took part in our 2018 Member Satisfaction Survey! The survey provides an important opportunity for community members to share ideas and feedback with us and shapes the direction of the community.

In the survey, members told us that the BVA experience meets their expectations, and that the controllers, events, and services that are offered are appreciated. The majority of our members connect from the U.S. East Coast and range in age and aviation experience. While 38% of members still use FSX (or FSX:SE) as their primary simulation platform, more members are switching to P3D (34%) and X-Plane (27%).

As was the case in 2016, the membership remains split on events, with 51% of members requesting an increase, and 48% of members wanting us to keep the number of events consistent. The membership is interested in more collaborative events that involve multiple ARTCCs (e.g., flying a KBOS-KJFK event), but is less enthusiastic about hosted events in other airspaces.

In addition to the multiple choice selections, members also shared some excellent ideas and comments that will be fed into our ongoing planning efforts.

It’s our pleasure to share some of the demographic information from the survey with you. If anyone is interested in seeing more of the data, or has questions about the survey, please reach out to [email protected].

The community conducts a member survey once every two years. Of course, we welcome members to share their ideas and suggestions with our Administration Team on a regular basis. Our Contact Us page provides various options to get in touch with us, including anonymously, and members are always welcome to post on our forums, speak with any of us in TeamSpeak, or message us on Discord.

Membership demographics:

Age:
- Largest demographic is 56+ (30% of members)
- 22% of members are 18-25
- The rest of the membership is evenly divided, with about 14% of members in each other age demographic

Location:
- 59% of members connect from the Eastern Time Zone
- About 10% of respondents connect from the other North American time zones, and about 10% of members connect from Europe

Experience:
- 40% of respondents have been BVA members for more than 4 years
- 16% of respondents joined BVA within the last 6 months
- 34% of respondents are rated pilots, 20% student pilots
- 38% of respondents do not have any real-world aviation experience

Primary simulation platform:
- FSX: 38% (in 2016: 77%)
- Prepar3D: 34% (in 2016: 14%)
- X-Plane: 27% (in 2016: 9%)

Read full article >

 
 
GA Fly-In: KRME, KSYR
Tuesday, October 2, 8-11pm ET
 
Pack the Pattern: KEWB
Thursday, October 11, 8-11pm ET
 
Regional Circuit: KBTV - KLEB
Thursday, October 25, 8-11pm ET
 
To see all of our upcoming events, please visit the Events Calendar
 
 
 
Save the Date: 60 Hours of ATC on November 30
By: Krikor Hajian

Boston Virtual ARTCC is pleased to announce the return of 60 Hours of ATC on November 30! Beginning at 11:00am ET on Friday, November 30, we’ll have Boston Center (ZBW) staffed non-stop for the next two days. During this event, we typically see controllers lighting up Boston and our smaller airports just as consistently. ATC will be available in ZBW until 11:00pm ET on Sunday, December 2.

In addition to 60 Hours of ATC, we’ll also be hosting Friday Night Operations (FNO) on November 30 beginning at 7pm ET and featuring Boston.

Read full article > 

 
BVA Adds Three New Training Staff Members
By: Evan Reiter

This month, Boston Virtual ARTCC’s air traffic control training staff welcomed three additions.

Recently-certified Class C Approach controllers Austin Cirulli (RQ) and Josh Nunn (NU) have both been accepted as Air Traffic Control Mentors. As Mentors, they will work with our newest controllers to provide training and certifications up to the Class C Tower level.

Austin began his ATC training with Instructor Arvid on May 3, 2017, and achieved his Class C Ground certification just a few weeks later. In about 16 months, he has progressed through the ranks to become a radar controller, and is also regularly “up” flying on the network. In addition to his ATC training, Austin received his PPL on July 27 this year.

Josh’s first training session was with Mentor Andrew on February 20, 2018, and he completed the Class C Ground training in just 3 sessions. Now, only 7 months later, he’s a fully-certified radar controller. Achieving a radar certification so quickly is a testament to Josh’s dedication and commitment to a very intense training program.

We are also pleased to welcome Jamsheed Lovelace (LE) as an Instructor (I1). Jay has been a controller at Boston Virtual ARTCC since 2008 and is one of our most active Center controllers. When he’s not spending his days (and lots of long nights) flying the Airbus A321, Jay can be found putting in long hours to give our pilots coverage late into the night. Jay is one of the longest-serving controllers in our community, and we are privileged that he has decided to now take on an active role in training. Jay has recently been working with transfer and visiting checkouts and is also certified to conduct training for home controllers at all levels.

Together, these three additions bring us to a 12-member air traffic control staff that consists of 8 Mentors and 4 Instructors. Together, these volunteers dedicate their time and effort to allowing new controllers to learn, train, and become certified to work in our complex, busy airspace. Please join our Administration Team in thanking the ATC Training Staff, and welcoming Austin, Josh, and Jay to their new roles in the community.

 Read full article >

 
 
Missed Approach Point

Last month's question was:
 
You are flying the RNAV GPS-B approach into Chatham (CQX). How do you know that you have arrived at your missed approach point (MAP)?

A) Your altimeter shows 600' MSL, which is your MDA
B) You have crossed the outlined coastline inbound from NUNKE and you have the airport in sight
C) You have crossed the "RW24" waypoint displayed on your GPS

Answer: the correct answer is C: You have crossed the "RW24" waypoint displayed on your GPS. There are a few ways that we can determine this. First, this is a non-precision approach; there is no glidepath because it is an LNAV-only approach, so your missed approach point will not be an altitude. That rules out answer A. Second, this is an instrument approach, so your MAP won't simply be the "airport in sight." That, combined with the "minimums" altitudes on the bottom of the plate, eliminates option B. This leaves answer C; this is the correct answer for two main reasons. First, on the geographical layout, "RW24" has a circled star next to it. This is the graphical depiction of a missed approach point. Second, on the altitude layout, "RW24" is the transition between the solid black descending line and the dotted climbing line. That's your MAP.

Challenge question: when adding an additional category to your FAA airman certificate (i.e., adding Private Pilot: Rotorcraft-Helicopter to an existing Private Pilot: ASEL certificate), what must be accomplished? In other words, do you need to fulfill all of the Part 61 aeronautical experience requirements for the rating? Do you need to take the written exam? What about the checkride?

The answer to the challenge question will be included in next month's Pilot Tip. 
 
 
September's screenshot contest winner was Szymon Puzdrowski:
 
 
You can always find current and archived editions of the Logan Informer on our forums.

You are receiving this message because you are a registered member of Boston Virtual ARTCC. Boston Virtual ARTCC is an integrated community of pilots and air traffic controllers on the VATSIM network that you applied to join. All members receive emails from us approximately one to two times per month, which include major announcements and our community newsletter. Members signed up for Event Reminder emails will receive emails from BVA more frequently. To delete your BVA account and stop receiving communication from us, please visit the Account Management page.