Sorry if this is a real old topic, I searched and didnt find any info. Does anyone know what happened to the Virtual Airlines News Flash Ive been out of the flight sim world for awhile and used to like to listen to it.ThanksJim

Jim -- I ran the VANF until about August of 2001, then became far too busy with work and rather dis-interested with the state of the hobby at the time (bickering between rival organizations/airlines was out of control). The VANF Weekly Show you refer to ceased broadcasting about five months prior, with a final show that George and I did together. After leaving in August 2001, I left the VANF with Steve Ryan, who also became tied down with real world responsibilities and was forced to eventually close the organization. While virtual airlines still are around, the hobby itself and community are no where near the numbers they were pre 9/11. That particular incident, coupled with the shut down of the VANF or VirtualAirlines.com seemed to somewhat disconnect the community from the level it was at previously. Sorry for the bad news, but I hope that answers your question. -Gary Kulash

Hey Gary, nice to see you're doing well. Best regards from my family to yours.Jim-There is a similar news service called the VAFlash operated by Erick Ortiz. VAFlash is a news and information service that will occasionally have podcasts and other news. It can be found at www.vaflash.com. But Gary is right, the pre-9/11 interest in flight sims has dropped considerably, hopefully with the latest release of MSFS (FSX) some of that interest can be re-generated.Peter McKayVANF Pilot of the Year, 2000.

>While virtual airlines still are around, the hobby itself and>community are no where near the numbers they were pre 9/11.>That particular incident, coupled with the shut down of the>VANF or VirtualAirlines.com seemed to somewhat disconnect the>community from the level it was at previously. I disagree. There are numerous virtual airlines that have hundreds, if not thousands of members that have been thriving since late 2001. The difference is that most of them are based on real-world airlines, instead of the fictional airlines that seemed to predominate pre-2001.If you look at the virtual renditions of American, British, Continental, Delta, Eastern, United, Air Canada you'll see some extremely professional and popular virtual airlines that are literally an order of magnitude better in terms of services and community activity.If you look at the community through the lens of VAFlash or the VA forums here at AVSIM or AllNodesBusy, you may think that the community has declined precipitously. What has really happened is that things have shifted. I don't post much here or the traditional VA sites since they simply don't attract the pilots we want.The community is healthy, and has been so for a half-decade. It's just changed, and not everyone may have changed with it.Cheers!Luke

There are numerous virtual airlines that have>hundreds, if not thousands of members that have been thriving>since late 2001. Luke, as the Auditor for Corporate Integrity for the VASX I saw numerous airlines with hundreds of pilots on that roster. What I found under further examination is that a huge percentage of those listed are inactive. I can name you several airlines that have claimed to have more than 1000 pilots, but when it comes to activity less than 10% are. This includes one airline claiming to be the largest VA in existence. If I were to list every pilot who ever turned in a pirep for my airlines I too would have several hundred.Getting an accurate count of VA's is difficult because a VA will close and not close its web space. Again, when I reviewed the VASX I found more than half of the over 400 airlines originally listed had closed or ceased active operations. While I agree many are thriving in other areas of the internet, I'm sure it's a case of more than I expect but considerably less than you expect. Add to that duplicate real world airlines and I'd say less than 250 airlines that have been open more than 18 months exist and are still active. Making a real world airline work is considerably easier than an original concept airline; you don't have to create a route plan, a livery or logos. Marketing is also much easier, either you like Southwest Airline and want to fly for them, or you don't (for example). However I also know in 99% of all cases real world airlines violate international copyright laws by using the real world airlines logos, hot linking to the real world sites and essentially stealing services from these airlines. The only reason real world airlines do not go after these VA's is because the gains by suing several hundred people is not worth the effort. I have friends in the legal departments at United, Southwest, Allegiant and Skywest, all are aware of the duplicate VA's but feel they're not worth the effort to put out of business. They also voiced a common dislike for all virtual airlines in general because of this. Luke, we can argue this for weeks, but I

>What I found under further examination is that a huge>percentage of those listed are inactive. I can name you>several airlines that have claimed to have more than 1000>pilots, but when it comes to activity less than 10% are.I think that may suggest more about the airlines on VASX than anything else. If you look at American Virtual, Delta Virtual, BA Virtual, Continental Virtual and Virtual United and Virtual Air Canada, we all have consistently applied rules regarding activity and roster trimming to ensure a vibrant and active pilot community.There a good number that don't prune, but most airlines with decent technology will do so. We don't need to artificially inflate our rosters; our own inactivity criteria haven't changed since 2002. We've had just over 5,000 pilots pass through, but 1,720 or so are still active, or have come back to us.>world airlines and I'd say less than 250 airlines that have>been open more than 18 months exist and are still active. I think we're in complete agreement on this. I certainly would suggest that there has been some pretty significant consolidation since 2001, and the barriers to entry have gone up significantly. You can't just throw up a simple static HTML site or basic organization and expect to be taken seriously today.I don't think that's a bad thing, or a sign of ill-health. I think that's really good, because it means that our organizations have matured and that the cream has risen to the top.>However I also know in 99% of all cases>real world airlines violate international copyright laws by>using the real world airlines logos, hot linking to the real>world sites and essentially stealing services from these>airlines.You really should take that back, because the significant real-world virtual airlines do nothing of the sort, and it's quite offensive to have this thrown around without any sort of backing. I don't doubt that there are some made in a day free sites based on a real-world airline that engage in IP theft, but to claim that "99% of all cases" do this is completely unreasonable.You should note that Continental, United and British Airways have licensed a virtual counterpart that does have legal authority to use marks and IP. Other airlines such as Delta have undergone IP reviews by attorneys and are considered reasonably safe from suit. Heavens knows Delta, American and others know about their virtual counterparts, but they don't sue for a reason.They also don't link to the real world site or steal services, because to do so is amatuer and beneath our technology capabilities. I know Delta Virtual has received access to a live schedule feed from a well-known travel aggregator, who makes downloadable schedule applications for some well-known airlines. Because of this, we have our own schedule database that is completely in sync with Delta's. To "steal" from Delta would not only be amatuer, but unnecessary.>I have friends in the legal>departments at United, Southwest, Allegiant and Skywest, all>are aware of the duplicate VA's but feel they're not worth the>effort to put out of business. They also voiced a common>dislike for all virtual airlines in general because of this. That's unfortunate for their employers, especially in a world where airlines need all the help they can to save them from themselves. Most good real-world virtual airlines have employees of their "parent" airline as part of the staff. We have DAL employees, and AVA was founded by an AAL employee.>Luke, we can argue this for weeks, but I