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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

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

Member Services Team Addition

Hi All, I am pleased to announce that @Dylan Parkes will be joining the Member Services team. Dylan joined VATSIM in 2015 and brings a wealth of experience from both the network and the division. They will undoubtedly be a great asset!

William Shaw

William Shaw in Staff Changes

S2 Syllabus and Lesson Plans

Over the last few months in tenure, @Adam Arkley and myself have worked with TG Staff to create a holistic syllabus for all ATC training undertaken in VATSIM UK. Individual Syllabi for each rating will comprehensively detail all theoretical and practical training covered during mentoring sessions. The content of the syllabi gives mentors clear direction and focus in their sessions and ensures students understand what is expected of them; also key competencies will be cemented that will make tran

Will Jennings

Will Jennings in ATC Training

GCAP Changes to Heathrow Training

Hello everyone, To comply with the introduction of the Global Controller Administration Policy (GCAP), we have made some changes to the way training is conducted within the Heathrow TG. Heathrow is now categorised as a Tier 1 airfield. For more information regarding GCAP, please see the VATSIM.net policy here.   Introduction of Heathrow GMP/GMC endorsements for S1 members With the implementation of GCAP, members who hold an S1 rating are now able to apply with Heathrow T

Fraser Cooper

Fraser Cooper in ATC Training

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

[Vacancy] Member Services Assistant

Vacancy - Member Services Assistant We are looking to expand the Member Services team and are opening applications for a Member Services Assistant.   Role Description The Member Services Department is responsible for providing a professional front-line service to current and prospective UK members, operating in a similar manner to a customer services team. We aim to be an accessible team, such that all members can come to us for help and guidance, allowing other teams to focus o

William Shaw

William Shaw in Member Services

[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

An Insight into Demand

When I was appointed to this post, I committed to being transparent with you all about all manner of different things. Specifically, I've committed to give everybody a view on the demand that ATC training is facing, at all ratings. Thanks to my colleagues in our Tech team, I have some data now that I can share with you. However, before we dive into any detail, it's worth saying that we can only work with the data that we have. We might draw many inferences from that data, but we'll never have a

Adam Arkley

Adam Arkley in ATC Training

Operations - January Staff Appointments

I am pleased to announce some new staff and some ongoing recruitment to the Operations Department since the January Vacancies post. Archie Middlefell has been appointed as an Aerodrome Operations Coordinator, a job shared between him and Kye. In addition, Alice Ford has been appointed as an Operations Assistant - with her focus being to support the Aerodrome documentation series. Our Aerodrome arm has been a significant focus of the last two years and I am pleased at how far we've come. Hop

Kieran Hardern

Kieran Hardern in Staff Changes

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

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

Graphics Team

🖌️ Want to join the VATSIM UK Graphics Team? 🖌️  We are looking to expand the VATSIM UK graphics Team! This is a team of people who assist the marketing department with the creation of event banners and various graphics for the social media and forums.  If you want to join please create a banner using the below parameters and email it to "[email protected]" with your Name by 8/02/24 "Glasgow Overload - 24/01/24 - 1200z - 1500z - Full staffup of Glasgow" Please be as adventu

Thomas Hallam

Thomas Hallam in Marketing

Division Instructors - Review and Appointments

As part of my review of ATC Training when I took on this post at the end of last year, I sought to understand the roles that are in place across the department, from department assistants to training group leads and mentors to division instructors. It's this latter group that is the subject of this blog post. For many, many years, division across VATSIM - including here in VATSIM UK - have recognised the experience and seniority of some of our most capable mentors through their appointment

Adam Arkley

Adam Arkley in ATC Training

Review Findings and First Steps

Good evening, all, As many of you will be aware, I have promised openness and transparency following my appointment and both publicly and within my teams, have shared details of the plan that I intend to follow for ATC Training moving forwards. On Tuesday of this week, Ben Wright chaired the first DSG meeting of both the year and his tenure and, during that meeting, I asked to present my findings on ATC Training across the division so far and my high-level, unordered plan for the future. I

Adam Arkley

Adam Arkley in ATC Training

TG Enroute - Appointment

Good evening all, I'm tremendously pleased to announce the appointment of @David Woodward who will lead TG Enroute moving forwards. Dave is no stranger to VATSIM, having led ATC Training in Bahrain as well as having previously been Division Director in VATSIM Sub-Saharan Arica. Dave's been a home member in VATSIM UK for some time now, mentoring in TG Enroute and sharing his expertise from his day job with both the ATC Training and Operations departments. As Dave is appointed, we must s

Adam Arkley

Adam Arkley in ATC Training

VATSIM UK needs volunteers for the new P3 Course!

VATSIM UK is asking for talented aviation lovers wanting to help the divison create a new P3 course.   Course content creators You will be given the resource, guidance, and support needed to help us create the lesson content needed for the P3 course. The P3 is being created with a radically new approach in comparison to the P1 and P2 courses, and you will be involved in the implementation of a brand new training system. Those involved in the creation of the course will also have t

Tarik Merrylees

Tarik Merrylees in Pilot Training

Advanced Flight Instructor

Hi all! I am pleased to announce that @Tarik Merrylees is joining Pilot Training as our first Advanced Flight Instructor! Tarik has an extensive background in real-world instructing. His passion for developing the P3 CMEL(A) course and bringing a new perspective to the Department is simply fantastic! While we will not commit to any release date, the P3 CMEL(A) is now officially under development! Welcome Tarik! Safe landings ✈️

Darren Hill

Darren Hill in Staff Changes

Operations Vacancies

As we go into 2024, the Operations Department is short of a few staff members. I would like to recruit at least 2 new members to the Operations department in January. As part of this, I would encourage anyone with an interest to reach out to me with any questions. Many of the roles in the department require a high level and breadth of knowledge and experience to be able to perform effectively, and we do not expect perfection from a new candidate. The department works very collaboratively an

Kieran Hardern

Kieran Hardern in Vacancy

Happy New Year - Operations 2024

Happy new year of AIRACs from the Operations Department. I have to start the post with a thank you to my staff for yet another year of hard work. @Luke Brown, Harry, @Peter Mooney, @Adam Arkley, @Kye Taylor, @Chad Byworth and @Harrison Grose, thank you for all you've put in over 2023 and for all the jobs behind-the-scenes that go unnnoticed. Network Traffic The network continues to get busier - and the UK is no exception, with nearly 80000 more movements than last year. Currently

Kieran Hardern

Kieran Hardern in Operations

2023 - A Year in Review

As 2023 leaves us and we bid a fond greeting to 2024, many will be undertaking a period of reflection and, as is tradition, we'll take a quick look back at ATC Training over the year. Before that, an extraordinary thanks needs to be given to all of our mentors, examiners, instructors and ATC training staff that make everything that we do possible. Mentoring controllers is hard work. Our mentors take people who have likely never, ever worked with, in or near Air Traffic Management before and

Adam Arkley

Adam Arkley in ATC Training

ATC Training - Review and Appointment

Good afternoon, all, I'm tremendously pleased to have been appointed as ATC Training Director and look forward to working with you all to improve the provision of ATC Training across the division. To those of you that have sent congratulatory messages; thank you - I appreciate them greatly. I realise that recent staff changes have caused some turbulence in the division, including within ATC Training and my thanks go to Kieran and the wider DSG for ensuring the smooth running of the departme

Adam Arkley

Adam Arkley in ATC Training

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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