Meridian Airlines Operations Manual

Version 2.0

Last Updated February 27, 2010

This manual is current as of the date the manual went into effect. The content of this manual will occasionally be updated, and newer versions will be released on the appropriate page of the Meridian Airlines web site. When these updated versions are made available, it will be mentioned on the Meridian Airlines news scroller, and previous versions will be considered out of date.

Copyright © 2010

This manual is property of the Meridian Airlines. It is provided to enhance the virtual airline experience, and for its users' enjoyment. No portions of this manual may be copied, reproduced, republished, or transmitted by any means without the express written consent of the Meridian Airlines Board of Directors.

Section 1 - Meridian Airlines and Partnership Airlines Boards of Directors

1.1   In order to keep from constantly revising this document for every personnel change, Meridian Airlines and its partnership airlines will maintain all documentation regarding their respective Boards of Directors on and within their own web presence, on the Meridian Airlines website.  As always, please feel free to contact any of these people, should you have any questions regarding any aspect of Meridian Airlines, or one of its partnership airlines.

Section 2 - “Jobs” at Meridian Airlines and Partnership Airlines

2.1 Meridian Airlines and each of its partnership airlines, maintains an online document that lists their Board of Directors.  This online document is also used to assign jobs to their respective Board members, and to provide a job description for a job title.  You may at any time review these documents, and should you feel you’d like to participate in the management of Meridian Airlines or a partnership airline, you may apply to fill a vacant position with the Director/Head of Meridian Airline’s HR department.

Section 3 - New Hires

3.1      What We Expect From You

3.1.1   The main focus at Meridian Airlines is to try to be as realistic as possible within the confines of FS while "keeping it fun". We hope that that is what brought you here in the first place. We have developed a Training Program to ensure that each pilot is ready to operate the aircraft safely, in a scheduled airline environment, while adhering to FAA part 121/135 regulations.

3.1.2   We want you to have fun at Meridian Airlines, but also want you to be serious about your "job" here. If you decide to join us, you will be expected to conduct yourself in a professional manner, and be aware of, and follow, Meridian Airlines and FAA regulations. We at Meridian Airlines feel that an important part of the "fun" aspect of our partnership Virtual Airlines (VAs) is to operate as professionally as possible.

3.1.3  We REQUIRE that each pilot read this Operations Manual prior to flying his/her first flight.

3.1.4   We also REQUIRE that each pilot use Microsoft’s Flight Simulator 2004 (FS9) or FSX, and suggest that they purchase FSUIPC.  The partnership airlines only provide aircraft models that function in FS9 and FSX, and some panels you will find don’t function properly without the full version of FSUIPC.

3.1.5  We've gone through a lot of trouble to make Meridian Airlines as enjoyable as we could, but we expect our pilots to fly as realistically as possible, and follow the rules set forth in this manual.

3.1.6   All new or returning pilots must complete their first flight within 15 days or be removed from the roster.

3.2   New Applications/Carry-over Hours

3.2.1   Pilots who come to Meridian Airlines from another VA or have logged hours on VATSIM, will be allowed to "carry over" their logged hours from that source. However, Meridian Airline’s HR Department must be able to verify your hours by viewing an online roster at the former VA's or VATSIM’s website.

            3.2.2   If you do not have any carry-over hours, you will start at "0" hours.

3.2.3   All new pilots with more than 20 carry-over hours must complete a minimum of one (1) assigned, initial evaluation flight, and file a detailed flight report. The Chief Pilot(s), or training instructor(s), will assign these flights.  Pilots will fly the evaluation in an aircraft specified by Training Department personnel.  This flight must be flown according to the published timetable, and using proper procedures for the specific aircraft. Once completed, the pilot will file a standard Flight Report (FREP), filling in all required information. If the report is accurate and complete, the pilot will be cleared to request any flights for aircraft up to, and including the category his/her current hours allow.  If there are obvious problems with the initial FREP, the Training Department will give the pilot any needed instruction, and may require one (1) or more additional assigned flight(s).

3.2.4  Pilots with fewer than twenty-one (21) hours will be assigned to the Meridian Airlines Training Academy.

3.2.5   Pilots with twenty-one (21) or more hours will be permitted to select any Meridian Airlines hub where they would like to be based after the completion of the initial evaluation flight.

3.2.6   Pilots with verifiable real-life aviation experience will be given special consideration, in regard to hours.

3.3   Aircraft Qualifications

3.3.1   Aircraft Qualifications/Categories are based on the number of hours flown. The system is set up in such a way that a pilot will reach the number of hours required to fly the largest aircraft in the fleet in a relatively short period of time.

3.3.2   The only requirement (other than accumulated hours) that will need to be filled in order to progress to the next category of aircraft is to have submitted accurate Flight Reports (FREPs) for flights flown in the previous aircraft category. (See section 5.6 below)

Section 4 - Training Department

It should be noted that Meridian Airlines and its partnership airlines’ various training departments, are not here to provide the new pilot with basic flight training.  Instead they are here to provide training in our pilot procedures, airline operations, and aircraft type familiarity.  This being said there are two links on the Meridian Airlines  website  tutorial page, under training, to sites that provide basic and advanced flight training.

4.1    New Pilots with less than twenty-one (21) hours

4.1.1   New pilots, with "zero" (0) time, or fewer than twenty (20) hours, will begin their flying careers at the Meridian Airlines Academy, based at the Dade/Collier Training and Transition Airport (KTNT), approximately 40 miles west of Miami.

4.1.2  Pilots assigned to the Meridian Airlines Academy at TNT will be assigned flights in the appropriate aircraft type, based on the number of hours flown, (turbo prop, or regional Jet) from any Meridian Airlines hub.

4.1.3 Once successfully reaching twenty (20) hours, or the Training Director feels that the trainee understands the required procedures, the pilot will be offered the opportunity to transfer to Meridian Airlines, at the hub of his/her choice.

4.1.4 Pilots may also request assistance, or additional training, at any time.  Training/assistance is available for any FAA/aviation-related procedure, including flight planning; fuel planning; instrument flight and landings; SIDs/STARs; long-haul procedures, etc. Just contact your Hub Manager, or the Training Department, if you like to participate in any voluntary program.

4.1.5  All hours accumulated during training flights are credited to the pilot's total hours.

4. 2   Video Check rides

4.2.1   If a pilot is having a particular problem, with a certain procedure(s), he/she may send a Flight Video to the Training Department, demonstrating the problem. The instructors may offer written instructions, or send the pilot a Flight Video demonstrating the correct procedure(s).

Section 5 - Meridian Airlines Flight Operations

This section of the operations manual will give pilots a complete understanding of how flights are requested, assigned, dispatched, and reported, as well as other related information.  Meridian Airlines and its partnership airlines utilize a totally automated, on-line flight assignment system to support our pilots.

5.1   Maximum Monthly Hours, Flight Requirements

 5.1.1  Pilots MUST fly at least ONE flight per month to remain on active status, unless he/she has requested, and been approved for a Leave of Absence (LOA) or vacation. (See Section 7, below)

5.2   Flight Selection

            5.2.1   The flight assignment process begins when pilots search the Meridian Airlines system-wide timetables and decide on the flight(s) that best suits them.

5.2.2   Using the “Search Schedules” routine, pilots can search the system-wide timetables using a variety of criteria (i.e., arrival cities, departure cities, aircraft type, aircraft registration number, etc.)

5.2.3   Pilots may select flights originating at their respective hub, or they can “deadhead” to any destination in Meridian’s or a partnership airline’s schedule, and pickup a flight departing this destination.

5.2.4   Pilots should request flights that best fit into their real life, every day schedule. Additionally, flight requests should be made only when the pilot has reasonable expectations of being able to complete the flight(s) on time and prior to the end of the month.

5.3   Flight Requests (FREQs)

5.3.1   Once the flight(s) are chosen, the pilot then accesses Meridian Airline’s automated Flight Request (FREQ) System.  The pilot fills out the online FREQ form, and if everything is correct the system assigns the flights.  These flights will then be displayed on the pilot’s hub personnel page attached to his name, and the pilot’s personal flight logbook.  If there are problems, the system will either ask for a correction to be made, or route the FREQ to the pilot’s hub operations manager for assignment.  In which case, the hub operations manager will e-mail the pilot once the flight assignment is made.

5.3.2   Flight requests may be submitted at any time. Pilots can select between 1 and 10 flights per request.  If more than one flight is requested, the flights must connect with each other (i.e., the next flight chosen must depart from the same city where the previous flight landed).

5.3.3   Once you have completed all flights covered by your FREQ, and would like to fly additional flights, you can submit another FREQ following the same guidelines mentioned above.  NOTE:  Meridian pilots may change their flight assignments at anytime. They do this by submitting another FREQ prior to the completion of the flights already assigned which will overwrite currently assigned flights.

5.4   Flight Dispatch

5.4.1   Once the pilot has searched the timetables, selected flights, requested the flights, and verified that the requested flights have been assigned; it is time for the pilot to dispatch the flight.

5.4.2  By selecting Flight Dispatch, from the Meridian Airline’s operations page, and clicking on the dispatch button the automated system will dispatch the next flight assignment in the pilots list. The automated system will then display a dispatch page with appropriate information necessary to complete a flight report (FREP). 

5.5   Flying Your Flight

5.5.1   It is suggested and prudent that all Meridian Airlines pilots perform some level of preflight planning prior to each flight. This planning will lower the chances for confusion during flight, as well as the chances of getting lost. High and Low Altitude Enroute charts can be very helpful for plotting the course of a flight. VORs and NDBs, as well as Victor and Jet airways and other useful information are displayed on these maps.  In the real world, airline flights operate at various altitudes during the cruising portion. However, these altitudes are not just randomly chosen. There are certain altitudes that are assigned to a flight, depending upon the direction of travel, and to some extent, weather. Below is a chart displaying the various cruising altitudes available in the United States for IFR flights.  

Direction of Travel	Below 29,000'	Above 29,000'
360° - 179°	...9,000', 11,000', 13,000'...	...29,000', 31,000', 33,000', 35,000’, 37,000’, etc.
180° - 359°	...8,000', 10,000', 12,000'...	...30,000', 32,000', 34,000'. 36,000’, 38,000’, etc...

5.5.2   All Meridian Airlines flights are operated under Instrument Flight Rules (IFR) ONLY. At certain airports, IFR can be cancelled prior to landing.

5.5.3   We do not allow the use of "GPS Direct" flights, except in areas such as remote islands, and/or areas with few or no navaids.

5.5.4   You are NOT permitted to pushback from the gate more than five (5) minutes before the published departure time.

5.5.5   We do NOT require you to fly your flights at the ACTUAL time of day that they are scheduled (in "real-time"). But we DO require that you set your flight simulator time to the proper time of day for your flight. If your flight is scheduled to depart at 8:00 AM, and the actual time of day is 3:00 PM, you will set your FS time to 8:00 AM, or the appropriate time that would give you the time you need to prepare for departure.

5.5.6   If you arrive more than fifteen (15) minutes late, you should note the reason in the "Comments" section of your flight report. You will also need to record certain information during your flight, in order to complete the FREP. You can print a "Flight Log" (DOC format) that you can use during your flight. If you fill out all of the info as you plan and fly your flight, you'll have all the information that you'll need for your FREP. This form is available from our "Downloads/Manuals" page.

5.6   Flight Reports (FREPs)

5.6.1   Once your flight is completed you will need to file a flight report (FREP). The FREP is the report that each pilot must file upon completion of a dispatched flight, in order to receive credit for the hours flown. This report can be filed through the Meridian Airlines web site using the link to the online form provided. Pilots are reminded to record the pushback gate departure, take-off, landing, and gate arrival times. Additionally, pilots should record cruise altitude, IFR route, fuel used (in pounds), number of passengers, and weather conditions for the departure and arrival airport, as this information is required in filing a FREP. In addition, the FREP form also includes a section for each flight, in which the pilot may type in any remarks concerning the flight, including any delays, unusual/un-forecast weather conditions encountered during flight, etc. We have provided a blank form for pilots to print out to help log their flight information - the form is available in the File Downloads/Manuals section.  

5.6.2   Whenever pilots complete a flight, they are required to report their “block” and “flight” times. “Block time” is the time that the flight begins pushback/gate departure or engine start (whichever occurs first), to the time that the aircraft's wheels are blocked and the engines are shut down at the arrival gate, or engine shutdown (whichever occurs last). “Flight time” is the time between the aircraft’s takeoff and the aircraft’s landing.

For example:     

Pushback: (or engine start)	07:00
Takeoff:	07:11
Touchdown:	08:56
Gate arrival (engine shutdown):	09:03

5.6.3   From the example above a “block time” of 2 hours, 3 minutes (or 2.1 hours), and a ‘flight time’ of 1 hour, 45 minutes (or 1.8 hours) would be logged.  Pilots should bear in mind that the departure and arrival times listed in the timetables were set with normal taxiing times and possible minor air traffic control delays under consideration.  As with real world airlines, Meridian Airlines asks pilots to log flight times using tenths of hours rather than minutes.  This allows for easier addition when calculating total flight times.  The following table can be used for reference when needing to convert minutes to tenths of hours. Flights are scheduled and reported in Zulu/GMT. Hours are recorded in 24-hour format. (I.E. 9:00 PM would be entered as 21:00, and 9:00 AM, as 09:00)

Minutes	Tenths	Minutes	Tenths	Minutes	Tenths
0	.0	20	.3	40	.7
1	.0	21	.4	41	.7
2	.1	22	.4	42	.7
3	.1	23	.4	43	.7
4	.1	24	.4	44	.7
5	.1	25	.4	45	.8
6	.1	26	.4	46	.8
7	.1	27	.5	47	.8
8	.1	28	.5	48	.8
9	.2	29	.5	49	.8
10	.2	30	.5	50	.8
11	.2	31	.5	51	.9
12	.2	32	.5	52	.9
13	.2	33	.6	53	.9
14	.2	34	.6	54	.9
15	.3	35	.6	55	.9
16	.3	36	.6	56	.9
17	.3	37	.6	57	Round to nearest whole hour
18	.3	38	.6	58	Round to nearest whole hour
19	.3	39	.7	59	Round to nearest whole hour

5.6.4   Although Meridian Airlines maintains an online logbook for each of its pilots, it is STRONGLY suggested that pilots keep their own records of their accumulated flight time.  This will become handy should a discrepancy or system problem occur.  If this occurs, the pilot should simply notify the appropriate hub operations manager, and the situation will be investigated promptly.

5.6.5   Online logbooks are available for each pilot.  A “password” will be assigned when you join Meridian Airlines.  Once the password is used to access the logbook, the pilot may change the password as desired.

Section 6 – Charter Flights

Although Meridian Airlines has an extensive route system, it most assuredly does not include everywhere one of our pilots might want to fly. For this reason Meridian Airlines has incorporated into its scheduling system the ability to request charter flights. What follows are the REQUIRED procedures for a pilot to utilize the charter flight function. Finally, it should be noted that the pilot’s hub operations manager MUST authorize all charter flights.

6.1 All charter flights will utilize the following format for the Flight Number, AAAB..BC. Where these letters represent the following:

6.1.1. AAA represents the 3 character symbol for the partnership airline for which the flight is being made (i.e., MDN – Meridian/Meridian Express, DEA – DownEast Executive Airlines, AEA – Alaskan Express Airlines).

            6.1.2. B..B represents the Pilot’s Meridian Airlines ID number.

6.1.3 C represents the route sequence number in alphabetic format (i.e., first flight/route – A, second flight/route – B, etc.)

            6.1.4 An example of an actual charter flight number would be MDN008A.

6.2   All charter flights will be requested utilizing the Charter Flight link on the automated flight request page. Please note that when making a charter flight request you should still review all NOTAM data being displayed at the time of the request.

6.3 The pilot should annotate the reason for the charter flight(s), the aircraft type for each route selected, and the number of PAX to be carried for each route requested in the comments section of the charter flight request

6.4 Upon receiving the charter flight request, the Pilot’s Hub Operations Manager will review the flight request for the following:

6.4.1 That the aircraft type is appropriate to the partnership airline indicated in the flight number submitted, and that the pilot has the category rating to fly the requested aircraft.

6.4.2 That the number of PAX to be flown is appropriate to the aircraft type indicated in the comments section.

6.4.3 That the airport(s) listed in the request are capable of handling the aircraft type indicated in the comments section.

6.5 Once the Pilot’s Hub Operations Manager has completed all of the tasks listed in Section 6.4 of this Operations Manual, the Hub Operations Manager will approve or deny the request, and e-mail the requesting pilot with this decision.

6.6 Because there will be NO dispatch code issued for any charter flight, pilots requesting charter flights need to be extremely diligent in their tracking of flight information during their flight(s). Again, as this CAN NOT be stressed strongly enough, the automated flight system will not be filling in ANY portion of your flight report when you fly a charter flight. You need to record and report all flight information normally included in a flight report. To help you with this the partnership airlines have posted in their respective download sections manual forms for recording flight data. It is strongly recommended that you download and use this form when flying charter flights.

6.7 Once the charter flight has been flown and the report filed, the FREP will be sent to the Pilot’s Hub Operations Manager. The Hub Operations Manager will review the report and approve it, or request from the submitting pilot, via e-mail, any information necessary for the Hub Operations Manager to grant final approval. Once the report is approved the Hub Operations Manager will notify the submitting pilot via e-mail of the approval.

Section 7 - Items related to Meridian Airlines Flight Operations

7.1   Use of Flight Simulator Accelerated Time

7.1.1   Though Meridian Airlines suggests that pilots NOT use the accelerated time feature in Microsoft Flight Simulator, this action is not restricted. However, those pilots that DO use this feature to complete a flight assignment absolutely MUST clearly state the use of this feature when sending in a FREP, in the section of the online form labeled "Remarks", including the acceleration speed used (i.e. 2x, 4x, 8x,...). Only the actual time spent on completing a flight can be officially recorded. This means that if a pilot flies a two-hour flight and at some point uses 2x acceleration, only one hour of flight time can be recorded for the flight, even if the acceleration was not used for the entire time.

7.2   Aircraft Type Qualifications

7.2.1   The following table shows your category and the aircraft available to be flown, as determined by your accumulated flying hours.

Category	Hours	Aircraft Type(s)	Operated By
1 - Local	0 - 5	Beech 1900D, DHC-6*	Meridian Express
2 - Feeder	6 -10	DeHavilland Dash-8 100, 300	Meridian Express
3 - Regional	11 - 20	CRJ-200	Meridian Express
4 – Premier Regional	21 - 30	CRJ-700	Meridian Airlines
5 - Continental	31 - 40	Boeing 737-700, 800, 900	Meridian Airlines
6 – Transcontinental	41 - 50	Boeing 757	Meridian Airlines
7 - Intercontinental	51+	Boeing 767, 777, 747, Airbus A330	Meridian Airlines

7.3   Weather

7.3.1 Meridian Airlines requests that our pilot’s use either of the “Real Weather” options when flying for the airlines.  Pilots without broadband or a constant connection can use the static option.

7.4   Meridian Airlines’ Designators and Call Signs

7.4.1   All divisions of Meridian Airlines use the same ICAO designator and call sign for Air Traffic Control.  The 3-letter designator is MDN, and the call sign is "Meridian". When flying online at VATSIM, your call sign will be the flight number of the flight being flown (i.e., MDN137).

7.5   Air Traffic Control (ATC)

7.5.1   ATC is mandatory, since all Meridian Airlines flights are to be flown IFR. Additionally, by increasing the amount of Traffic, ATC becomes more active, your sky less empty, and your realism increased.

7.6 Online Pilot Identification

7.6.1  When you as a Meridian Airlines, or Meridian Express, DownEast Executive Airlines, or Alaskan Express pilot fly online, you will use the following format as a means to file your flight plan and identify your flight with your online controller: “MDNxxxx” (where xxxx is the flight number, one to four digits). Further, your call sign will be “Meridian” as per Section 7.4.1. These online identification procedures are to be followed regardless of which one of the three different types of flight number you use to request, dispatch and report your flight internally to Meridian Airlines.

Section 8 - Personnel Actions

8.1   Vacation, Leave of Absence (LOA), and Flight Inactive Status

8.1.1   Each pilot is entitled to eight (8) weeks of "vacation" time. If a pilot expects to be inactive for a period of two (2) to eight (8) weeks, he/she should request "vacation" time for that time period. The Hub Operations Manager will approve all vacation requests, unless the eight (8) week limit has been reached. In this case, a LOA may be granted.  An LOA may be used for any amount of time required by the pilot.

8.1.2   In regards to pilot illnesses, the pilot need not notify the hub operations manager immediately for a Leave of Absence. Only when the pilot feels able should a message be sent to the hub operations manager. Other such instances may apply, such as a sickness, injury, military duty or death in the family.

8.2   Unexcused Extensive Absences

8.2.1   All Meridian pilots will complete a MINIMUM of one flight per month. At the end of each month, all pilots not meeting the minimum requirements will be contacted and reminded. Said pilots then have until the 15th day of the new month to complete a flight. If no flight is completed by the 16th of the new month, the pilot will be removed from the roster.

8.3   Retiring

8.3.1   Every now and then, a Meridian Airlines pilot may want to call it quits for good. In these situations, the pilot will need to notify the Director of HR to request retirement. Upon requesting retirement, the pilot will be deleted from the roster. Their record in the master excel record will be removed to the retired page of the excel file. Should a pilot elect to return, they will be added to their new hub roster, and the master excel file will be updated by moving their record from the retired to the active page.

8.4   Changing Hubs

8.4.1   Occasionally, pilots may wish to transfer to a hub other than the one they started with. When this situation arises, a pilot wishing to change hubs should notify the Director of HR of the hubs involved or the hub operations manager, and request a transfer. Once this is done, the pilot's current hub operations manager will make arrangements with the hub operations manager of the hub that the pilot is requesting to be transferred to. Changing hubs can be done by any pilot, and as many times as the pilot wishes. These pilots may return to their original hub through this same method of transferring between hubs. All logged flight time accumulated by the pilot will be kept upon the transfer, as well as previous aircraft type qualifications.

Section 9 – Add-Ons and Resources

9.1   General Discussion about Add-Ons

The use of add-ons such as those below is recommended for Meridian Airlines pilots to make their Flight Simulator experiences much more realistic. For more details on these and other add-ons, simply leave a message in the Pilot's Lounge (Forum) and someone will certainly give you all the details you need.

9.1.1   Add-ons are a great way of increasing the realism of any Flight Simulator flight. These add-ons can vary from scenery enhancements to adventure compilers to aircraft to panels, and make the Flight Simulator hobby much more enjoyable. Many of these types of add-ons, which by the generosity of their authors are freeware, can be found at the FlightSim.com or AVSim.com web site, as well as many other great places throughout the World Wide Web.

9.1.2   Instrument panels for a wide range of aircraft types can be found and added to certain aircraft. These panels are made to resemble the actual cockpit panels found in the real aircraft. Many of these panels can be visually stunning. Panels can be found at FlightSim.com and AVSim.com.

9.1.3   Scenery enhancements can also add much more realism to the Flight Simulator world with detailed terminals, guidelines on taxiways and ramps, and even jet loading bridges, among other features. Scenery files can be found at FlightSim.com and AVSim.com.

9.1.4   Aircraft make up the bulk of the available freeware add-ons, and can even be found as static scenery as well. Many of the aircraft being created today are masterpieces, with incredibly accurate visual and flight models. Static aircraft can be used to further heighten the realism of a particular airport. These aircraft can be placed around the Flight Simulator world, according to the pilot's desires, and relieve the airports of the default "ghost town" look.  Static aircraft models can be found at FlightSim.com and AVSim.com.

9.1.5  Meridian Airline’s partnership airlines provide their pilots with the best models available for its fleet.  Additionally, these models are “painted” with our liveries.  These models and their operations manuals can be found on the partnership airline’s download page of the Meridian Airlines web site.

9.1.6   A Ground Proximity Warning System (GPWS) is HIGHLY recommended. This system gives aural warnings for terrain avoidance, aircraft configuration problems, and radar altitude callouts. These systems are available as "adventures", as add-on gauges for any panel, and are also included in some panels.  For realism this is a MUST HAVE add-on.

9.1.7  Also, any add-on that simulates the boarding of passengers increases the realism of your flying experience tremendously.  FS Passengers, available at www.fspassengers.com is one such program.

9.1.8   Lastly, would be the GPS that has been made available with FS9 and FSX to the flight simulator community. This device, as with the real life version, allows pilots to enter an airport or navaid, and determine the distance the pilot is from that location. In addition, the Global Positioning System can display present ground speed, heading, and time enroute to the airport/navaid punched in on the system, allowing the pilot to have a better grasp on the arrival time at the destination airport.

9.2   Resources

9.2.1   SquawkBox is highly recommended for Meridian Airlines pilots, as it provides a much higher level of realism in the flight simulator experience. Pilots can download this program from the SquawkBox web site at http://squawkbox.ca. After trying the program out a bit to get used to it, it can prove to be extremely enjoyable. SquawkBox includes a Traffic Collision Avoidance System (TCAS), which adds to the realism, and helps pilots complete flights. Though Meridian Airlines recommends that its pilots use this program, it is not required. For more information, check out VATSIM, at http://www.vatsim.net, or http://www.vatusa.org

9.2.2   Use of weather-oriented web sites will help greatly when planning a flight. Such web sites include www.weather.com, which is maintained by The Weather Channel. Links to this, and other site are provided in the "Pilot Resources" Section, and in the Meridian Airlines Flight Ops/Dispatch Center.

9.2.3   Downloadable approach and terminal charts are available at various sites. Links are provided on the Dispatch Center page.  Approach and terminal charts are available for free from “Airnav.com”, “charts.vatsim.net”, and “chartfinder.vatsim.net”.

9.2.4   Also, runwayfinder.com and skyvector.com provide detailed, real world enroute charts.

9.2.5   AirNav.Com is a very helpful site, which contains considerable amounts of information regarding every airport and airfield in the continental United States.

9.2.6   FREPs may also be filed "automatically", by using either "FS Flight Tracker", or “FS Flight Keeper”. We have developed an interface for these add-ons, which allow the pilot to send the FREPs directly to the Hub Management System. These two utilities also record all of the information that the pilot will need for the FREP, and more. FS Flight Tracker and FS Flight Keeper are "payware" add- We HIGHLY recommend the use of either one of these utilities. 

Section 10 – Conclusion

 
As the Flight Simulation hobby advances technologically, those of us here at Meridian Airlines and its partnership airlines strive to bring you the absolute best VAs we can.  If there is anything that you would like to suggest or recommend to make Meridian Airlines even better, please contact one of our Directors.