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A group blog by DSG in Division Updates

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Contributors to this blog

  • Chris Pawley 44
  • Simon Irvine 37
  • Daniel Crookes 27
  • Ben Wright 20
  • VATSIM UK 7
  • Nathan Donnelly 5
  • Kris Thomson 2
  • VATSIM UK Web Services 2
  • Andy Ford 2
  • Oliver Rhodes 2
  • Adam Arkley 2
  • Gdpr Removed 1
  • Loui Ringer 1
  • Adam Farquharson 1
  • Kieran Hardern 1

About this blog

Entries in this blog

United Kingdom

January 2025 Update

Good Evening and a Happy New Year!   An update is once again long overdue and as the beginning of a new year is always a great time for both reflection and looking to the future, I can think of no better time than now. Starting in somewhat standard fashion with staff changes, in November 2024 we welcomed @Jack Edwards into the role of Operations Director. Jack agreed to take this position to enact a number of internal changes in the Department, with one of the primary focuses being to
Ben Wright

Ben Wright in United Kingdom

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United Kingdom

New Operations Director

Good Afternoon All, Following Dave Woodward's resignation from the DSG, I am pleased to announce Jack Edwards as the new Operations Director. Many of you will already know Jack from staff roles he has held over the years, such as Division Instructor, and a previous stint as Operation Director. Jack's previous experience within the DSG and wider staff team makes him an excellent appointment - I look forward to working alongside him and seeing the Operations Department progress under his lead
Ben Wright

Ben Wright in United Kingdom

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United Kingdom

Resignation - Dave Woodward

Good Evening All,   It is with sadness that I announce Dave Woodward’s departure from the VATSIM UK DSG and staff team effective immediately. Dave joined our team at the beginning of this year as Training Group Instructor for TG Enroute and, during his tenure, has been working hard to supervise the training of our C1 students. In stark contrast to this time last year, our C1 waiting lists currently stands at just 12 members, a large part of which is down to the effort which Dave has in
Ben Wright

Ben Wright in United Kingdom

1
United Kingdom

Department Restructuring

As alluded to during my October 2024 update, there are some planned changes to the structure of the Marketing Department. To summarise, this involves the splitting of the Marketing Department into Events and Social Media, with Events moving to fall under the Operations Department’s remit. Social Media responsibilities will move to the current Member Services Department, which will rebrand to become the Community Department. Luke Thompson and Thomas Hallam will move to the Operations and Communit
Ben Wright

Ben Wright in United Kingdom

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United Kingdom

VATSIM UK Christmas Social

All,   It’s almost that time of the year, and what better a way to get in the Christmas spirit than dinner and drinks with your fellow VATSIM-ers? The VATSIM UK Christmas Social will be held in Birmingham on 30 November - join us for dinner at 19:30 at the Indian Cafe Racer, followed by one of the below group activities: VATSIM UK Christmas quiz, likely to be held at a hotel bar Darts at the Flight Club Birmingham Crazy golf at Golf Fang Birmingham Dinner w
Ben Wright

Ben Wright in United Kingdom

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United Kingdom

October 2024 Update

Good Evening All,   Time really has been flying as of late, and as I write this I realise it’s been 6 months since the last update was posted to the forums! As I’m sure is the case for most of you, summer has been particularly busy for me but (thankfully for my wallet) the summer socials are over and winter appears to be on the way all too fast. It’s been great to have some more free time lately, and I’ve very much enjoyed getting back on the Network to fly and control. It seems as tho
Ben Wright

Ben Wright in United Kingdom

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United Kingdom

New Operations Director

Good Evening Everyone,   I hope you enjoyed your weekends and I write to you with good news! This morning @Dave Woodward accepted my offer of the Operations Director role, making him the latest addition to the Division Staff Group. Dave will be known to many already, having served as our Enroute ATC Training Group Instructor since the beginning of this year, and he brings a wealth of practical and procedural knowledge to the Operations Department. I would like to welcome Dave to the DS
Ben Wright

Ben Wright in United Kingdom

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United Kingdom

[Vacancy] Operations Director

The Operations Department is responsible for the creation and maintenance of our sector file, controller pack, local procedures and documents, letters of agreement and temporary procedures. The Operations Department also supports the Events Team during the event planning phase to assess event feasibility and provide guidance in order to ensure the success of events. The Operations Director’s main responsibility is to provide leadership to the Operations Department. Other responsibilities of
Ben Wright

Ben Wright in United Kingdom

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United Kingdom

VATSIM UK Live! : Tickets now available

Tickets for VATSIM UK Live are now available for purchase from our site - https://live.vatsim.uk Our event is open-door, meaning every VATSIM member is welcome to join us for this in-person event over the weekend of 10th and 11th August 2024. This is the one chance each year to fly, control and socialise alongside other VATSIM members from across the network hosted in the UK. It is not only a moment to deepen the experience of the network, but also learn and collaborate with other members. 
Chris Pawley

Chris Pawley in United Kingdom

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United Kingdom

Introducing Town Hall Sessions

During the last DSG Meeting and following feedback from our members, we discussed at length the lack of interaction between the DSG and our membership. We understand that this is not a new issue, and for many years there has been a growing feeling of disconnect between members, staff and DSG. We are keen to hear your thoughts and suggestions on matters concerning VATSIM UK as a whole, as we are conscious that many of our pilots and controllers can provide insight into problems which may not be a
Ben Wright

Ben Wright in United Kingdom

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United Kingdom

New Deputy Division Director

All,   I'm pleased to announce that @Nick Marinov has accepted my offer for the position of VATSIM UK Deputy Division Director. Nick has served as Assistant to the Vice President - EMEA for the past four and a half years; prior to this role he has also served as a Training Group Manager and Community Manager within the Division. Those of you who know Nick will understand that his return to the UK will bring a wealth of knowledge, and I am certain that he will be a great asset to the Di
Ben Wright

Ben Wright in United Kingdom

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United Kingdom

Discord General Chat Changes

Last Sunday we announced the removal of the ‘general-chat’ channel within Discord. Clearly this was an emotive subject for many of our members, and we pledged to thoroughly review this decision before committing to making changes. It was pointed out by many, and evident on review, that the brevity of the announcement and lack of clear explanation for this action was a mistake, and I would like to apologise for the confusion this has caused. The purpose of this post is to update you all on our pl
Ben Wright

Ben Wright in United Kingdom

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United Kingdom

VATSIM UK Live! Announcement

We are pleased to announce the 2024 edition of VATSIM UK Live! will take place on the weekend of 10th and 11th August 2024 at Conference Aston in Birmingham, UK.  VATSIM UK Live! is the annual in-person event where pilots and controllers can spend two full days flying and controlling besides one another in the same room. This brings another level of immersion to the VATSIM experience, as you get behind the scenes insights on the other side of the scope, control side by side or meet and chat
Chris Pawley

Chris Pawley in United Kingdom

5
United Kingdom

Marketing Department Management

Good evening all,   Those of you who read my April update will be aware that we were unable to fill the position of Marketing Director in February. In the time since, I have continued to ‘caretake’ the role while temporary solutions were  discussed within the DSG.  Effective immediately, the responsibilities of the Marketing Director role will be split between Kieran Hardern and myself, with Kieran assuming responsibility of events and the Events Team. Thomas Hallam, who has done
Ben Wright

Ben Wright in United Kingdom

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United Kingdom

Shanwick Oceanic Currency Changes

After discussion amongst the DSG, it has been decided that UK Visiting Controllers who are only permitted to control Shanwick positions will be exempted from quarterly activity requirements effective immediately. Practically speaking, this means that Shanwick only visitors will not fall inactive on our controller roster. If you believe you meet this requirement and have been erroneously marked as inactive, please get in touch with the Member Services Department via the Helpdesk who will be able
Ben Wright

Ben Wright in United Kingdom

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United Kingdom

Pilot Quality and Network Enjoyment

The quality of many pilots on the network is the subject of much discussion across VATSIM UK and other vACCs, Divisions and Regions. For as far back as I can remember, the topic has been present on a daily basis across VATSIM and I have dealt with my own fair share of well meaning but very new members of the VATSIM network that disrupt my ability to enjoy the network. As a direct result, I have been encouraging people for some time to make better use of the .wallop command whilst controlling, pa
Adam Arkley

Adam Arkley in United Kingdom

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United Kingdom

April 2024 Update

Good Evening Everyone,   I hope you have all enjoyed your long weekend. I can assure you this is not a late April Fools joke, but simply another opportunity to update our members on what has been going on ‘behind the scenes’ since my previous post. Beginning with recent staff appointments, @Archie Middlefell and @Alice Ford were appointed as an Aerodrome Operations Coordinator and Operations Assistant respectively. Last month we also welcomed @Dylan Parkes into the Member Services
Ben Wright

Ben Wright in United Kingdom

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United Kingdom

TVCP Update 1: Visiting/Transferring Eligibility, Restrictions and Training

As some of you may be aware, an updated version of the Transferring and Visiting Controller Policy (TVCP) was recently published. This will be implemented worldwide between now and 01 June 2024 and, although the majority of the changes have been made to align TVCP with GCAP, there have been other changes which will affect Visiting and Transferring Controllers across the Network.  You may view the full policy via the link here. We will endeavour to provide further details on how the Transfer
Ben Wright

Ben Wright in United Kingdom

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United Kingdom

GCAP Update 2: Technology and Endorsement Changes

As the 1st March rapidly approaches, Mr. Jennings and I caught up with the Tech team this evening in order to review the progress of our technology solutions that will enable us to meet the requirements laid out in GCAP. I am pleased to say that things are progressing well and that there should be no impediment to us going live with new and enhanced functionality on the 1st March. Details of the pending technology changes are outlined later in this blog post. Before we explore anyt
Adam Arkley

Adam Arkley in United Kingdom

19
United Kingdom

[Vacancy] Marketing Director

Vacancy - Marketing Director Role Description The Marketing Department is responsible for all public-facing media and the planning of events in our Division. The Marketing Director is a position appointed to the Division Staff Group, with the primary responsibility of providing strategic direction to the Marketing Department. As this position frequently serves as the first point of contact with Divisions and Subdivisions across the world, excellent interpersonal skills and a good stand
Ben Wright

Ben Wright in United Kingdom

0
United Kingdom

New Member Services Director

Hello All,   I'm pleased to announce that @William Shaw will be joining the DSG as our new Member Services Director. Will has been an active staff member within the Member Services Department for almost 2 years and many of you will have already interacted with Will through this capacity before. He brings a number of new ideas to the Department, and will be working closely alongside the ATC Training Department in particular as we embrace GCAP and look to open Visiting and Transferring f
Ben Wright

Ben Wright in United Kingdom

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United Kingdom

January 2024 Update

Good Evening All,   The days seem to be moving incredibly quickly, owing to time off during the Christmas break and, in my case, a subsequent week on holiday. It seems hard to believe I am now over a month into this new role, but nevertheless, your staff team have been hard at work, and I would like to provide a quick update on our progress over the last month. Firstly, we have seen a number of recruitments to our staff team. @Adam Arkley's appointment as ATC Training Director and
Ben Wright

Ben Wright in United Kingdom

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United Kingdom

New ATC Training Director

Hello All,   Following a competitive application process which concluded this week, I am happy to announce Adam Arkley as the Divison's new ATC Training Director. Adam is no stranger to our staff team, serving in a variety of positions over the past 10 years, including his recent appointment as the Aerodrome Operations Coordinator. His passion for the role was made obvious during the interview process, and he brings a host of new ideas to the ATC Training Department. I personally look
Ben Wright

Ben Wright in United Kingdom

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United Kingdom

December 2023 Update

Hello Everyone,   Before people start heading away for the Christmas break, I wanted to take the time to formally introduce myself, as I am conscious that many of us have not had the pleasure of meeting before. I am no stranger to VATSIM UK, having joined the Division in early 2016 and, for the last four and a half years, I have served as the Marketing Manager under Loui Ringer's leadership. During this time, I have risen to the somewhat dizzying heights of VATSIM Network Supervisor, B
Ben Wright

Ben Wright in United Kingdom

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United Kingdom

New VATSIM UK Division Director

I am delighted to announce the appointment of @Ben Wright as the new VATSIM UK Division Director, effective immediately. Ben brings nearly 5 years of invaluable experience within VATSIM UK in the Marketing team, recently running the day to day operations of the department.   Ben is no stranger to the network as a controller, pilot and also part of the Supervisor team. Ben has some fantastic ideas for the future of the Division. @Chris Pawley will help Ben transition into the r
Simon Irvine

Simon Irvine in United Kingdom

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