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I agree. I almost wonder if it would be worth while for VATUSA to open its own ATO. I know VATSTAR is out there, and they do a good job, but what if we had our own? Let the ARTCC's design a program, they know the airspace better than anybody. I tried to get ZOA setup with VATSTAR but it fell apart because we don't meet some of the requirements they've set for a few check rides. That's a shame because we offer some great airspace for learning. Our airports have advanced a little too far along the nextgen pipeline and decommissioned some of the legacy procedures they require, and I assume that is why I have not heard back.

I reached out to VATSTAR in hopes that a partnership could be formed with the Division to address the concerns that the ARTCC's brought to light in a recent forum post that I initiated.  Unfortunately, I was not satisfied that these concerns would be addressed if we were to partner with VATSTAR and have them as our official ATO.  While I have not made any official moves otherwise, I am looking at some options and I am hopeful to initiate some sort of effort to address the concerns that the ARTCC's have brought forth especially during events.  Honestly while I think that we can improve somewhat, I am not sure what sort of percentage of improvement we can expect.  I am hopeful that with a variety of programs etc. that combined we can effect positive change at a higher percentage than just one concept by itself.

A previous ATM and division director was big into the concept of “continuous improvement”. I should probably clarify that we only run this level of traffic on them post-certification on M98 as an opportunity to develop proficiency with traffic levels typically only seen during events.

If we’re going to wring our hands about how to improve events, we can’t blame it all on the pilots. We all deal with the same talent pool when an event rolls around, and facility to facility often yields starkly different results in the overall flow of event traffic. With very few exceptions, most of the guys who go through our radar training and then work a busy event thank us for giving them the opportunity to train to that level prior to throwing them to the wolves during an FNO.

Dhruv, point well taken.  I personally think the Death Sims can be a useful tool providing they are used properly and serve to enhance a student's ability, knowledge and experience as opposed to discouraging them.  I trust that is the case in most situations although I am certain that each ARTCC may do things a little different than the other.  I think one thing that sometimes gets lost is the fact that a person with a S3 rating is still a student even when they have achieved their major endorsement.  Most of us who have earned our C1's are still students especially for those who do not have the aviation background as part of their career. 

Good discussion guys.

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