Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ's)
Questions you may have during your flight

Not all of us are lucky enough to be real pilots. Most people consider flying with FS on the VATSIM network as a hobby and in many cases this may lead to questions from the pilot's side. Some of us are just unfamilair with the airport, others do no have much expertise of ATC at all. In both cases you might have some questions, while there is not always enough time on the frequency to get an answer immideately. That's why I decided to set up this subpage in an easy to understand question/answer system. Click on a header to read the answers.

Real Schiphol procedures related (departures):

1. What things should I keep in mind when planning a flight?
2. What is a SID and how should I use it?
3. How do I choose a realistic parking position?
3. What is a so-called slot time, and how shall I use it?
4. When and where do I make initial contact?
5. What shall I do first, startup my engines or assigning my groundcew to push me back?
6. How do I know the correct taxi route to the assigned runway?
7. What is my initial cleared FL and the transition altitude?
8. Important: why doesn't Tower say anything when I'm airborne?
9. Departure does not give any headings, am I doing something wrong?

Real Schiphol procedures related (arrivals):

1. How and where do I enter the Dutch airspace, intending to land at EHAM?
2. What runways are category II and III equipped?
3. Important: what is the first thing I have to do after landing?
4. I don't understand the taxi instruction. How can I find my way?
5. Oh-oh, my gate is still occupied. What can I expect ATC to do?
6. Can I shutdown my engines without prior approval?

VFR related Schiphol procedures:

1. I want to make VFR flight from or to Schiphol. What do I need to know?
2. I want to cross the Schiphol CTR. What shall I do?

Communication procedures related:

1. I am confused by the number of ATC stations. Where do I start?
2. When and where do I make initial contact?

Suggestions to enhanche realism:

1. What can I do to enhance realism?
2. How do I find actual, real life, flight information and how can I use it here?
3. What voice program is generally used within the Dutch VACC?
3. How can I use Roger Wilco on Amsterdam Airport Schiphol?

Flight Simulator/technical issues related:

1. I'm using FS2000 and going down all the time shortly after take off. How come?
2. Voice quality is really bad, what can I do?
3. What can I do to make my handoff quicker?