We are a GO for today's Third Anniversary Summer Getaway flight from Atlanta, Georgia to Fort Myers, Florida! Event time is 1800z which is just under six hours away!
First, I want to say a word of thanks for the incredible support for this event by our VATSTAR Training Partners; Atlanta ARTCC (ZTL), Jacksonville ARTCC (ZJX), and Miami ARTCC (ZMA). And just behind them I have to thank some of our incredible sponsors for their generosity with the wonderful promotions and giveaways they are furnishing for us: Aerosoft, Flightbeam Studios, FS2Crew, Just Flight, LatinVFR, Orbx Simulations, REX Simulation Systems, and TFDi Designs. IF YOU FLY FROM KATL TO KRSW DURING THE EVENT TIME WINDOW AND INCLUDE THE WORDS "VATSTAR ANNIVERSARY EVENT" IN YOUR FLIGHT PLAN REMARKS, YOU ARE AUTOMATICALLY ELIGIBLE FOR A DRAWING TO WIN SOME OUTSTANDING PRIZES FROM ANY ONE OF OUR AWESOME SPONSORS!
Our flight briefing for today is as follows:
ROUTE: KATL BANNG2 LUCKK SZW TYNEE1 KRSW
DISTANCE: 484.1nm
DURATION: approximately 1h21m, dependent upon aircraft type
CRUISE: odd-numbered thousands (eastbound)
ORIGIN: Hartsfield International Airport, Atlanta, GA, USA (KATL)
ARTCC:
https://www.ztlartcc.org/DIAGRAM:
http://aeronav.faa.gov/d-tpp/1807/00026ad.pdf#nameddest=(ATL)
GATE MAP:
https://travelwidget.com/terminal-maps/ATL/ATL_overview_map.pngBANNG2 SID p1:
http://aeronav.faa.gov/d-tpp/1807/00026banng.pdf#nameddest=(ATL)
BANNG2 SID p2:
http://aeronav.faa.gov/d-tpp/1807/00026banng_c.pdf#nameddest=(ATL)
FORECAST: 28008KT P6SM SCT035 (as of 1215z)
SCENERY:
https://www.ztlartcc.org/sceneryADDITIONAL INFO:
Generally at KATL the Ramp areas (the areas between the midfield terminals) are NOT controlled by Ground. In the real world they are controlled by airport and airline staff; not by FAA controllers. On VATSIM there can occasionally be a "KATL_R_GND" position logged on acting as Ramp control -- but, this is uncommon and most of the time pilots should expect to push and start at their own discretion, taxi to the north or south end of the ramp area (depending upon their assigned departure runway), and call Ground holding short of either F (north) or L (south). The usual call to Ground would be "Atlanta Ground, {callsign} at ramp {number}{north/south}, information {atis}, taxi to runway {rwy#}." For example, if you were assigned 27R for departure and were pushing from Gate A5 onto Ramp Area 2, you'd taxi to the south end of it and call with "Atlanta Ground, Delta 1579, Ramp Two South, Information Alpha, Taxi to Runway Two-Seven-Right."
Takeoff clearances at KATL include a verification of the pilot-nav RNAV point that is first on their assigned SID. On the BANNG2 Departure the first point could be SNUFY, SLAWW, SKNNR, GRITZ, or WLSON depending on the assigned departure runway. Clearance from Tower will come in this format: "{callsign,} Atlanta Tower, RNAV to {location}, wind {wind direction} at {wind speed}, runway {runway#}, cleared for takeoff." A proper readback would include the RNAV point, the words "cleared for takeoff," the runway, and your callsign.
ATL_TWR: "Delta 1579, RNAV to SLAWW, wind 280 at eight, runway two-seven-right, cleared for takeoff."
DAL1579: "RNAV to SLAWW, cleared for takeoff two-seven-right, Delta 1579."
DESTINATION: Southwest Florida International Airport, Fort Myers, Florida, USA (KRSW)
ARTCC:
http://www.zmaartcc.net/wp/DIAGRAM:
http://aeronav.faa.gov/d-tpp/1807/06757ad.pdf#nameddest=(RSW)
GATE MAP:
https://www.flylcpa.com/uploads/pagesfiles/2563.gifTYNEE1 STAR:
http://aeronav.faa.gov/d-tpp/1807/00154tynee.pdf#nameddest=(RSW)
CONFIGURATION: generally arrivals use RWY6 in calm winds
APPROACHES: RWY6 (Bay Visual, ILS or LOC/DME, RNAV(GPS)); RWY24 (VOR/DME or TACAN, RNAV(GPS))
APPROACH CHARTS: (
https://www.faa.gov/air_traffic/flight_info/aeronav/digital_products/dtpp/search/results/?cycle=1807&ident=krsw)
FORECAST: 08007KT P6SM VCTS BKN035CB BKN100 (as of 1215z) (CAUTION: there may be thunderstorms in the vicinity upon arrival!)
SCENERY:
http://www.latinvfr.org/sceneries/south-west-florida-fort-myers-krsw-for-fsx-and-p3d/ADDITIONAL INFO:
It's important to note that the airport layout has changed significantly since the default scenery in FSX was created, so, it's a good idea to update before the event. The default FSX scenery has the old terminal building on the north side of the airport; the new terminal building with its three prominent piers is on the south side of the field (i.e. a right turn-off if you land on RWY6). Our sponsors LatinVFR have a very beautilly rendered version of the airport for a reaonably affordable price which does include the new, updated terminal building and many local landmarks along the Florida Gulf Coast.
Please join us in our Discord server (NOTE: we will be using Discord *INSTEAD OF* TeamSpeak for this event!) in the Public Discussion channel. An invite link to our Discord can be found on our website under Resources --> Discord. 1800z is the meet-up time; we expect departures to commence around 1815z and hope that most everyone is airborne by around 1845z, with the last arrivals hopefully occurring by approximately 2030z. We're looking forward to seeing you there!
