X-plane ATC

[oregonboy109]

Ok I have been flying in x plane for about 6 months and I love it BUT the one thing that really really needs to be improved is the ATC. It will make weird comments like "I have not done that in a while" ????? and I know about VATSIM and online flying but to be honest i'm kind of intimidated by them so I would like to know if the ATC is getting a makeover in X plane 10.

Thanks

[-TheoGregory]

It most definitely is. Thats one of the core improvements in Version 10

[Lukasz]

I felt the same way at the beginning of my VATSIM flying, being rusty on ATC procedures and not being an English native speaker I did the first flights in some obscure areas, where no one else flew, just to get used to "being online". After that I've moved to Alaska. There is little traffic there and very friendly controllers, who will even forgive landing at wrong parallel runway at Anchorage (don't ask, how I know ). Look for the ATC on Saturday and Sunday evenings/nights (Zulu time) or fly at other times if you want uncontrolled airspace.

As for the procedures, they may look terrible complicated at first, but in fact they aren't. All you need to know at the beginning is how to file a flightplan and some basic radio commands and replies (readback). Everything is well documented on VATSIM site and there are plenty of other resources to gather required knowledge from.

Before XP10 release, you could also try Helicharly's ATC plugin. It has some quirks on its own, but it worked fine for the most of the time for me.

[dan]

Here's a cool timelapse video of the new ATC and AI planes in action.

And here are some developer blog posts about the new ATC coming in XP10.

[Keith Smith]

The best way to learn to work with ATC is to work through a training program specifically designed to learn how to fly 'in the system'.  Using a synthetic ATC system, even if it's highly improved, isn't really going to get you there.

I would suggest checking out the ZLA Pilot Cert program on VATSIM, or the Training Center over at PilotEdge. The material is the same in both programs.

That's a series of 3 VFR flights and 11 IFR flights (you'll see the last two IFR flights after you complete the 9th one) which will step you through the basics, complete with video tutorials, written transcripts, the required charts, etc.

[oregonboy109]

Thanks everyone the video looks so cool and thanks for the online flying advice.