# Flight Operations - - - - - - ##### **What if my computer or flight simulator crashes? This topic is covered in some detail within our *Policies & Procedures* Document. It may be found [**here**](https://docs.walkerair.us/books/1-policies-procedures/page/diversions-emergencies). - - - - - - ##### **What if I crash during one of my flights?** If you crash or have any other in-flight event preventing you from completing your flight as planned, you’ll need to **cancel** ACARS and **restart** that flight. - - - - - - ##### **Is a Pilot allowed to change the simulation rate?** Changing the simulation rate during a flight **is** permitted as often as desired; however, a 15% penalty will be assessed against the total number of points earned for that flight if its use is detected by ACARS. **EXAMPLE:** 53 points earned – 8 point penalty (.15 × 53) = 45 points awarded

*Changing the simulation rate is **not** permitted on any **Tour** flight. If you submit a PIREP and increase the simulation rate in any way, you’ll be required to re-fly that leg in order to advance in the **Tour***.

- - - - - - ##### **Do you allow a Pilot to pause the flight simulator while a flight is underway?** Yes. As long as you’re flying *offline* and don’t do anything to interrupt the operation of ACARS, you may pause your flight and resume it at any time afterwards *without penalty*. If you’re flying online in a simulated, real-world environment, though, the controllers at *IVAO*, *PilotEdge*, or *VATSIM* will likely **not** be as accommodating. They typically do **not** allow flights to be paused. - - - - - - ##### **Can I fly flights to/from Home Bases other than the one I was assigned?** The **Home Base** (**Home**) you initially requested on your *Application Form* is your primary operating base and only needs to be used for your **first** **Cargo** and **Scheduled** flights. After that, you’re allowed to operate flights starting *or* ending at *any* airport you choose as long as there are flights in the schedule linking them. For **Charter** flights, your **Home** holds no special or unique significance – *unless* you have enabled **Worldwide Persistence**. In which case, these flights will be treated the same as **Cargo** and **Scheduled** flights.

*Learn more about **Worldwide Persistence** by [reading this.](https://docs.walkerair.us/books/3-help/page/worldwide-persistence "Worldwide Persistence")*

Once you’ve flown from your **Home**, you **never** have to return to it *unless* you wish to do so (and there’s a 5-point bonus for doing that). - - - - - - ##### **I created a Flight Plan in *simBrief*. Do I have to follow the route and runway assignment it generated?** No. You're free to fly any route you want. The one provided by *simBrief –* or any other flight planning tool you may use *–* is only a suggestion and **not** a requirement. - - - - - - ##### **I like flying helicopters. Can I fly them here?** Yes, you can fly helicopters that we have in our fleet. If there is a helicopter or livery not in our platform, please do not hesitate to open a ticket on our CrewOps and we will look into adding it. - - - - - - ##### **How are new aircraft added to the *Walker Air Transport* Fleet?** We’re aviation and flight simulation enthusiasts who enjoy flying aircraft of all kinds. Our Pilots are as well. As a result, we’re constantly evaluating freeware and payware aircraft Developers release and making our decision to add or not add them to our Fleet based on aircraft availability, operational factors and available resources; therefore, not all requests can be honored. If you’d like to make an aircraft-related suggestion (aircraft *or* livery), submit a **Help Ticket**. Before submitting a request, though, please keep our **Fleet Assignment Criteria** in mind:
**Cargo****Charter****Scheduled**
In order for an aircraft to be added to the *Cargo Fleet*, it must have: - a cargo capacity of 15,000lbs (6,804kgs) or more; - a real-world Cargo/Freighter variant or a Cargo/Freighter conversion completed by an industry-recognized, third-party company; and, - for Company and livery creation purposes, it must also have a Cargo/Freighter 3D model available **or** an ability for the aircraft to be made to appear like a real-world conversion. In order for an aircraft to be added to the *Charter Fleet*: - It must have between 4 and 30 seats in standard configuration, as stated by the aircraft manufacturer; and, - It must be commonly used in **real-world** Charter operations. **NOTE**: *Some aircraft, at the discretion of the Management Team, may receive special authorization to be in the Charter Fleet. This does **not** mean all aircraft requests will be approved nor considered for special authorization status.* In order for an aircraft to be added to the *Scheduled Fleet:* - It must have 30 or more seats in standard configuration, as stated by the aircraft manufacturer; and, - It must be commonly used in **real-world** Scheduled operations.
- - - - - - ##### **Do you allow aircraft substitutions?** No. Our flight modules are built in a way substituting aircraft isn’t necessary. If a PIREP documents a different aircraft than what was initially selected, it will be rejected. - - - - - - ##### **Is it permissible for me to fly aircraft that aren’t in *Walker Air Transport’s* Fleet?** When you log a flight in Walker, you may only fly an aircraft specifically approved for a **Cargo**, **Charter** or **Scheduled** flight. In other words...
**Cargo****Charter****Scheduled**
For a **Cargo** Flight, you must fly an aircraft in the **Cargo** Fleet. If the aircraft you wish to fly is **not** in this Fleet, then you will **not** be allowed to fly a Cargo flight.For a **Charter** Flight, you must fly an aircraft in the **Charter** Fleet. If the aircraft you wish to fly is **not** in this Fleet, then you will **not** be allowed to fly a Charter flight.For a **Scheduled** Flight, you must fly an aircraft in the **Scheduled** Fleet. If the aircraft you wish to fly is **not** in this Fleet, then you will **not** be allowed to fly a Scheduled flight.

*To view the aircraft in each of our Fleets, go here: **Downloads > Liveries > Active***

If the aircraft you wish to fly is **not** listed in a Fleet, you may request it be added by completing a **Help Ticket**.

*There is no guarantee the aircraft will be added.*

Additionally, that aircraft must also be flown in our company livery. Any flight you complete while using our ACARS system in a non-fleet aircraft – or one **not** in our livery – will be r**ejected**. And should this happen more than once, you risk being terminated. Members of the [Patreon](https://docs.walkerair.us/books/2-training/page/pilot-profile-patreon) program are excluded from this requirement. - - - - - - ##### **I have an aircraft type listed in your Fleet whose Developer I don’t see. Can I still fly it?** If you wish to fly an aircraft listed in our **Cargo**, **Charter**, and/or **Scheduled** Fleets created by a Developer that’s **not** noted/listed, you may submit a **Help Ticket** requesting it be added to the Fleet.

*There is no guarantee the aircraft will be added.*

**You may not, however, under any circumstances whatsoever, fly an aircraft in our System *without* a Company livery.** Submit a **Help Ticket** – **or** – if you have additional questions, post a comment to the **\#general** channel in *Discord*. - - - - - - ##### **Do I have to fly my entire flight in a single session?** No. From a Company standpoint, you may begin a flight, pause and resume it at a later time as often as you think it necessary. As long as ACARS is **not** interrupted, you can complete the flight – and do so without penalty.

*Make sure you review your flight simulator’s operating instructions to ensure pausing it will **not** interfere with the operation of ACARS.*

- - - - - - ##### **During a night flight, I discovered my arrival airport did not have any runway lighting. Can I adjust the time-of-day setting to complete the flight?** Yes. You may adjust the time-of-day setting during your flight – at any time *and* as many times as you like. - - - - - - ##### **I just checked my ACARS Flight Log and see the altitude shown there is different than the one being displayed in my aircraft. Is that going to be a problem?** Certain aircraft, altimeter settings, simulators and other factors *can* have an effect on the altitude ACARS receives and displays. In this case, it may not have switched to Cruising mode. If this happens, simply adjust the target altitude (Cruise Altitude) in the SC window until it registers ‘Cruise’. This does **not** have to be the altitude planned – and it has **no effect** on your flight. - - - - - - ##### **I am not getting points for landing flaps?** This happens because the altitude in your simulator is different from the altitude you entered in the ACARS prior to clicking "Fly". In order to resolve this, you need to verify what altitude you are reporting in your simulator. The easiest way to do this is to find yourself on our map, or look at your simBrief OFP (on our website) and check your altitude showing. It is not uncommon for you to have entered FL360, but you find yourself registering at FL380.

*X-Plane 12 and Microsoft Flight Simulator are known to report altitude differently than X-Plane and Prepar3D. It has to do with the difference in atmospheric pressure and typically happens at higher altitudes and regions. Due to this, we implemented the green "cruise mode" buttons on the simBrief OFP and Flight Briefing pages for pilots to ensure that they are correctly in cruise phase. You can also verify that by monitoring the log in your ACARS.*

simBrief OFP information can be found here: [https://docs.walkerair.us/books/3-help/page/simbrief#bkmrk-what-is-the-simbrief](https://docs.walkerair.us/books/3-help/page/simbrief#bkmrk-what-is-the-simbrief) If that is the case, simply click the gear icon next to the altitude on the ACARS application and enter FL380. If don't correctly you will see a log entry in your ACARS that reads "Cruising at XXXX". If that line exists, you have successfully entered cruise phase and you will receive points. Cruise phase is activated when your aircraft matches the flight level cruise you specified in the ACARS--see Flight Tab section here: [https://docs.walkerair.us/books/3-help/page/smartcars-windows-pc#bkmrk-on-the-flights-page%2C](https://docs.walkerair.us/books/3-help/page/smartcars-windows-pc#bkmrk-on-the-flights-page%2C) - - - - - - ##### **Do I need to fly with online ATC?** No – we don’t require our Pilots to fly with online ATC. And while it’s *always* encouraged, there’s *never* any pressure for you to do so. To provide online ATC services for our Pilots, we’ve partnered with *PilotEdge* POSCON, and *VATSIM*. Pilots are still able to fly on IVAO as Walker Air Transport regardless of them not being a partner. - - - - - - ##### **When I fly online, what should my Callsign be?** Whenever flying online, enter the following information in the remarks section of your pre-file. **CALLSIGN IS WALKER // VISIT US AT WALKERAIR US** Your callsign will ***always*** be your *Walker Air Transport* Pilot ID.
**If your assigned Pilot ID is WAT300, file your callsign as Walker 300 -- and use that callsign for *all* radio calls.**
- - - - - - ##### **My simulator crashed while I was almost finished with my flight. Can these hours be logged?** No. Manually-submitted PIREPs (Manual PIREPS) are **not** allowed because we don’t have a process in place to accommodate them nor do we have any plans to develop and implement an accommodation process. - - - - - - ##### **My flight was Rejected for a fuel-related reason. How can I make sure that doesn't happen again?** There are three (3) fuel-related issues detected by ACARS and, by extension, our *Flight Data System*, causing a flight to be Rejected: [**Unlimited Fuel**](https://docs.walkerair.us/books/1-policies-procedures/page/unlimited-fuel), [**Mid-Air Refueling**](https://docs.walkerair.us/books/1-policies-procedures/page/mid-air-refueling) and [**Enroute Refueling**](https://docs.walkerair.us/books/1-policies-procedures/page/enroute-fueling). Of these, a significant number of **Rejected** flights fall into the **Mid-Air Refueling** category. That category title, however, can be misleading and confusing because it covers much more than what its name implies. Let's bring some clarity to it... ACARS has a **Fuel Check Process** utilizing a log entry – *Pushing back with (number)lb of fuel* **or** *Pushing back with (number)kgs of fuel* – to identify whether or not a Pilot has added fuel inflight, where *inflight* is defined as 'push back to the end of the flight'. In other words, as soon as your aircraft moves in *any detectable way*, whether you initiated it or your Sim did it on its own in some manner, ACARS records that as *pushing back* – and the amount of fuel you have on board at *that exact moment* is what's documented. If you add fuel at ***any time*** after that, it will be noted as **adding fuel inflight**, thereby triggering the **Reject** notice. There are seldom, if any, guarantees this will not happen. After all, it's technology and sometimes it will not work. You can, however, help matters by ensuring all of the fuel you need for your flight has been added to your aircraft *before* starting ACARS – **or** – if you've already started ACARS, add your fuel *before* you push back. Also, make it a habit to check your Flight Log frequently throughout your flight to ensure you won't be surprised by an unexpected entry – and potentially, a **Rejected Flight** notice. - - - - - - ##### **Do I fly from gate-to-gate/stand-to-stand or from runway-to-runway?** We like to see our Pilots simulate real flight operations to the greatest degree possible. You will, however, *always* have the freedom to fly as you wish to fly. Complete your flight in any manner you like. Some considerations when doing so: - Ideally, all Scheduled flights *should* begin at a gate/stand and end at a gate/stand (any one of your choosing); - Ideally, all Cargo flights *should* originate on a Cargo Ramp (when available) and end at one; - It's **not** mandatory, nor is it always realistic to do so, based on the limitations of a flight simulator’s airport scenery; and, - Charter flights can originate from *any* location on an airport or airfield. Because you may encounter something not addressed here or elsewhere, though, we *always* encourage you to use ‘Pilot discretion’ and good judgment. - - - - - - ##### **How do I know which gates/stands to use?** It’s helpful to have an airport map to know where to taxi once you’ve exited the runway; however, as a practical matter, finding the first open gate will usually suffice. We do not 'own' any gates/stands at any airport. - - - - - - ##### **How do you know I actually flew a flight?** We use ACARS to track all flights. As long as you remember to activate it *before* your aircraft begins to taxi (and submit it once it’s parked at your destination), your flight data will be logged – and we will know you actually flew a flight… You can confirm that yourself by reviewing the entries in your *Pilot Logbook*. - - - - - - ##### **Someone told me about *Worldwide Persistence*. What exactly is it?** Worldwide Persistence is, quite simply, a setting forcing **Charter** Flights to be flown in a route-like manner similar to how **Cargo** and **Scheduled** Flights are flown. **Enable** it and you’ll be required to depart from your previous flight’s arrival airport. **Disable** it and depart from any of the 43,000+ airports in our database. It may be *enabled* or *disabled* **at any time**. Visit your **Profile** page in *Crew Ops* to do so. **EXAMPLE:** *You land at **KTIW** | **Tacoma Narrows Airport** and plan your next Charter flight.*
**If *Worldwide Persistence* is...****... then the Departure Airport for your next flight is...**
**Enabled** KTIW | Tacoma Narrows Airport.
**Disabled***any* airport in our database.

*With Worldwide Persistence enabled,* *Events and Tours are **not** affected.*

- - - - - - ##### **I just landed in Salt Lake City and my Profile says I’m in Minneapolis. How do I fix that?** There’s actually nothing to fix. Your location -- ‘*Current Location*’ in the graphics below -- only changes when you complete a **Cargo** or **Scheduled** flight. It doesn’t change for **Charter** flights. To see how this works, let’s take a look at some examples…
**EXAMPLE ONE:** - WAT528’s Home is CYYZ | Toronto Pearson International Airport. - Their current location is PGSN | Saipan International Airport. - This means their most recently completed flight was either a **Cargo** or **Scheduled** flight. - Their next **Cargo** or **Scheduled** flight *must* originate at PGSN | Saipan International Airport. - If *Worldwide Persistence* is: - **Enabled**, their next **Charter** flight *must* originate at PGSN | Saipan International Airport. - **Disabled**, their next **Charter** flight may originate anywhere. **EXAMPLE TWO:** - WAT100’s Hub is KJAX | Jacksonville International Airport. - Their current location is KJAX | Jacksonville International Airport. - This means their most recently completed flight was a **Charter** flight. - Their next **Cargo** or **Scheduled** flight *must* originate at KJAX | Jacksonville International Airport. - If *Worldwide Persistence* is: - **Enabled**, their next **Charter** flight *must* originate at KJAX | Jacksonville International Airport. - **Disabled**, their next **Charter** flight may originate anywhere.
[![image-1641231284451.png](https://docs.walkerair.us/uploads/images/gallery/2022-01/scaled-1680-/image-1641231284451.png)](https://docs.walkerair.us/uploads/images/gallery/2022-01/image-1641231284451.png) [![image-1638126852042.png](https://docs.walkerair.us/uploads/images/gallery/2021-11/scaled-1680-/image-1638126852042.png)](https://docs.walkerair.us/uploads/images/gallery/2021-11/image-1638126852042.png)
- - - - - - ##### **I want to begin flying the Canada Tour. My Profile says I'm in Rome and the Tour's first airport is in Toronto. Do I need to fly to Toronto or buy a Jumpseat to get there?** No. The Tour System operates independently of the **Cargo** and **Scheduled** Systems. You do **not** have to fly from wherever you currently are to any airport in any Tour for which you've signed up. You also do **not** need to purchase a Jumpseat.

*A Special Note For Those Operating Charter Flights and **Worldwide Persistence (WP)** When Flying Tours: If WP is **enabled**, disable it.* *If WP is **disabled**, you don't need to do anything. Leave it that way.*