CAT program released!

[Keith Smith]

http://training.pilotedge.net/page/cat-ratings

At long last, the Communication and Airspace Training (CAT) program is here. This is a series of 11 VFR flights (compared to the 3 we had previously) to step you through a wide range of airspace and communication teachable moments!

We know people have been waiting a long time for this and with our 5th anniversary fresh in the rear view mirror, it was time to get it out there!

Missing for now are the cockpit video and overviews, but I plan on doing regularly scheduled workshops to power through these fairly quickly.

Note, the CAT1 rating doesn't involve ANY ATC communication, it's a flight between two non-towered fields with no flight following along the way. You simply file a flight plan, do the flight, and then drop us a note at ops@pilotedge.net when you're done to claim the credit. You can then move onto the CAT2 at your leisure, after which ATC will take care of submitting your test results just as we do with the V-x and I-x ratings today.

Speaking of V-x ratings, they'll be removed from the web site in 7 days from now. Don't feel pressure to fly them, they have equivalent flights within the new CAT system.

Our roster system is in transition, we'll be moving it to the main web site as soon as possible. For now, there are CAT-specific rosters on the Rosters page of the training site. However, the roster tables don't yet handle the display of the CAT rating that was passed (it shows your most recent V-x/I-x rating). That will all be cleaned up very soon.

For now, enjoy the new flights! The leaps between the V-1, V-2 and V-3, the new program is a lot more gradual and covers a lot of important information regarding flights with and without flight following, Class D ops, non-towered ops and Flyways under the Bravo! Have at it, everyone!

[Ryan B]

Looks fun! I'll have to check those out... maybe I can learn a thing or two (like how to not land at the wrong airport!)

[jiva602]

I am extremely excited about this program and can hardly wait to get started this weekend

It's interesting to me that after watching the VFR workshops I began flying by following this type of progression intuitively on my own - and now I have a comprehensive guide.

From what I've read so far, the progression in smaller increments with more detail seems just perfect!

[Keith Smith]

You have the right idea. This really is a very natural progression. Some background info that may be of interest, the original training program (V-x and I-x ratings) were something I developed for VATSIM ZLA ARTCC back in 2005. The environment there was heavily geared towards IFR, so the notion of including some VFR flights was something to be approached delicately. As a result, only 3 VFR flights were developed. This is why the V-x ratings feel like they're missing so many important points. That, and VATSIM didn't/doesn't have realistic CTAF (they use text on 122.80), so non-towered ops can't be trained realistically.

The audience for PilotEdge is different, though, as is the technology which drives the network. We can handle voice CTAF with range-limiting just fine, so with that, we built the CAT ratings. This is a much more natural, intuitive progression, covering a wider range of VFR operations.

It used to be that you could pass the V-1, V-2 and V-3 but still not really have any exposure to very common VFR operations (such as a flight between two airports without flight following), or Class D operations, or operations under the Bravo. Given the success of the I-x ratings (a significant percentage of new users go through the training program), it made total sense to commit some time to getting the CAT ratings done. They were written > 2 years ago, but were awaiting an automated roster implementation and a series of edited cockpit videos. It was tough to get those done, though, and when I finally did get through a bunch of the cockpit videos, I suffered a 3TB drive crash and lost all of the videos that were completed.

Rather than allow that to remain an obstacle, though, we decided the program would still be very useful as is. My intention is to hold workshops on a recurring schedule to work through the ratings. I'm also aware that members of the streaming community may well decide to go through these and produce some great content, too.

Enjoy the program!

[MethiKal]

Read through a couple of CAT ratings and looks like good learning stuff. Great work!
I only took the V rating exams and have been flying a couple of flights on the network, but I noticed that I nearly always only fly to towered airports and request flight following because I don't exactly know what to do at non-towered airports and without flight following...
I know it's probably not hard to learn, but I will defintely take these leasons and exams.

Cheers!

[Keith Smith]

Exactly. The V1, V2 and V3 do not adequately prepare you for a wide range of VFR flights. This is why the CAT ratings are such a natural fit.

[yajna]

Three cheers for the new ratings! I've taken the first 2 and they are nice, bite-sized, self-contained lessons. Not like the I-10 and I-11 which require multi-hour epics of preparation.

[Mudhen]

I'm glad to see an upgraded VFR training program.
Question:
1. Except for the Class B training, are we obligated to fly into and out of the various airports listed in the CAT training, or can we choose our own as long as the requisites for the training curriculum are met?
(And that the chosen airports are within P/E airspace boundaries.)

[BFG]

Brilliant. Well done and yet even more value from PE. Thanks so much.

[Anders S]

To take the CAT rating
Do you have to complete the V and I ratings first ?