- The story behind American Flight Airways
John Valencia and Enrique Garcia-Sayan established American Flight Airways Virtual Airlines
(AFA) in November 1996. Originally AFA only had 2 hubs which were located at Pontiac, MI and
Lima, Peru. During the early years of AFA from November 1996 and throughout 1997 AFA
primarily flew commuter flights and a few domestic and international flights. In September 1997
AFA decided to expand its services and established new superhubs in Detroit, MI and Atlanta,
GA, which resulted in substantial growth for AFA. AFA was accepted onto virtualairlines.com in
May 1998 which made AFA a truly global virtual airline.
American Flight Airways Virtual Airlines began codesharing with Pacific Airways (PAY) in 2000
and in 2001 we co-founded the major alliance "The American Pacific Group or in short APG". The
alliance allows us to share web resources as well as to offer pilots greater flexibility and variety in
the routes and aircraft they can fly.
AFA added a Low Cost Carrier Alpha Jet to its operations at the end of 2004. Early 2005 Kenric
Smith, Thomas Snoeck, Troy Miles and Enrique Garcia-Sayan, completed the conversion of the
international operations of American Flight Airways. The Sydney hub was successfully enlarged
to AFA Australia and the San Juan operations were merged into AFA Latin America. Currently
AFA has 6 US hubs and 2 international divisions; these include respectively Atlanta (ATL), Dallas
(DFW), Detroit (DTW), Phoenix (PHX), San Francisco (SFO), Washington D.C (IAD) and AFA
Australia (main office in Sydney, Australia (YSSY)) and AFA Latin America (main office in Sao
Paulo, Brazil (SBGR)).
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- Requirements for membership
Anyone can become a member of AFA and it's free. Flight Simulator versions 2000, 2002, 2004
or FSX are required in order to fly. While you should preferably have some basic piloting skills
(i.e.: take-off, landing, etc.), we will gladly help you advance in your flying skills.
To join the airline,
select a hub of your choice, then click on the hub's image which will take you to its homepage
from there click on "Join" and fill out the new pilot application form. It's that easy. Our automated
system will send you a link by e-mail so you can take the exam. So be sure to give a valid e-mail
address when you join.
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- Downloading Aircraft
AFA has a variety of aircraft ranging from the smaller Beechcraft 1900D to the heavy 747. We
have freeware aircraft available for download in the FS2002, FS2004 (FSX) format.
Furthermore we have textures available for some popular payware models such as PMDG and LDS. Most of our aircraft
include self installers for your convenience. You can go immediately to the AFA Aircraft page to
start downloading the aircraft. Please visit our Fleet Forum for any questions or suggestions you
may have regarding our fleet.
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- Flight Regulations
AFA flights are NOT assigned. You can choose any flight to fly using the guideline below. We ask
that ALL flights be flown and reported in a logical format and not out of order. We have examples
below of a correct and incorrect format:
| Logical Order (Correct Format) |
Illogical Order (Incorrect Format) |
| ATL-DTW |
ATL-DTW |
| DTW-IAD |
CLE-PHX |
| IAD-DTW |
STL-LAX |
We can not stress this enough please fly and report ALL flights in the logical sequence noted
above. Pilots are required to fly at least one (1) flight per month.
Note: You may fly any route as long as you follow the following:
Pilots with less than 20 hours ... Can fly category 1 or 2 aircraft routes.
Pilots with 20 hours to less than 40 hours...Can fly category 1, 2, 3 aircraft routes.
Pilots with 40 hours or more...Can fly any route.
Aircraft Categories
Category 1 - Beechcraft B1900D
Category 2 - DeHavilland Dash 8, Canadair Regional Jet CRJ200, Embraer EMB-170
Category 3 - Airbus A320, Boeing 717, Boeing 737
Category 4 - Airbus A330, Boeing 757, Boeing 767
Category 5 - Boeing 747, Boeing 777
- Charters
All AFA Hubs provide its pilots with Charter Flights that are unscheduled destinations which will
vary from month to month. Just go to the Charter Flight Center on our homepage and take a look
at ANY charters that allow you to fly as some are open to all and others are restricted. All we ask
is that you have the right qualification (hours) to fly that particular aircraft and that you only
reserve one at time to complete so others might have the chance to reserve a flight that they
might want.
Charters should be logged once they are flown by selecting "charter" in the PRS flight report.
Furthermore we offer you the possibility to request a charter in the Charter Flight Center or to ask
your hub staff to create a charter for you.
- Jumpseating
Jumpseating is when a pilot rides on a flight as a passenger. This is allowed only between APG
hubs. You may make one jumpseat flight from your home hub to another APG hub to begin a
flight line there. Once your scheduled line is complete, you may jumpseat again back to your
home hub to complete your trip. (i.e.: If your home hub was Detroit and you wanted to make a
flight line in San Francisco, you could jumpseat on flight AFA/140 from Detroit to San Francisco,
make a complete flight line using San Francisco routes, then jumpseat again from San Francisco
back to Detroit on flight AFA/141). Jumpseating is logged in your logbook just as a special flight,
but DOES NOT COUNT for any flight hours therefore do not log any flight hours for a
jumpseat trip. Special jumpseat flights can be approved by your Hub Director to complete a
charter or to participate in an APG sponsored Vatsim event, otherwise jumpseating is only
allowed once to an APG hub, then once to return to your home base.
NOTE: Until a future upgrade to the pirep system (PRS) allows for logging Jumpseat as a regular
flight type, log your Jumpseat flight in the comments section of your PIREP on your next flight to
explain the gap in your logbook (i.e.: Jumpseat flight AFA/140 KDTW - KSFO).
- Special / Flyin Flight Category
The Special/Flyin Flight category on the PIREP page is used for an APG Endorsed Online Event such as VATSIM Sunday and the following flight from that airport back to an APG airport in case the VATSIM Event destination is not a scheduled APG airport. It is not to be used to fly just any flight to just any destination at a pilots whim.
APG Endorsed Online Events PIREP Rules: The American Pacific Group (AFA and Pacific Airways) has relaxed the PIREP rules for all APG Endorsed Online Events to help increase the participation of pilots at such events. This will also include any APG sanctioned events outside the regularly scheduled events and will be notated in the announcement of the event in our Events FORUM.
Simply stated, this allows you to fly and legally log the flight for an online event regardless of where you are positioned in the world as long as you continue your original flight line after the event. You will not be required to "jump seat" to a location and back in order to participate in the event. When you log the flight notate in the PIREP, under the comments section, that it was an APG Online Event. This way your Hub Director will know why there is a flight line break in your PIREP log. For example, if you want to fly an event from to Billings, MT and you are currently in Atlanta, then even though there is no APG flight between these 2 airports you can just fly it and log it like any other special flight. You don't need to fly from Atlanta to e.g. Denver first to participate in a scheduled event to Billings, MT. Alternatively if you are in Atlanta and want to fly VATSIM Sunday to Billings, MT, then you can pick a city to fly into Billings, MT from as long as the departure airport is one that APG services, (for example Salt Lake City to Billings or Boise to Billings, MT). Your next flight after any flyin should then originate out of Billings in this example on a scheduled APG flight. The only time that would not apply is if you flew 2 flyins in a row, then you might have 2 subsequent breaks in your logbook - like VATSIM Sunday, then a Tuesday event as the next flight you make.
- Flying greater than 1x?
"ALL" flights that are logged are to be flown at a simulation rate of 1X only. One exception is to
catch up to where you were after a computer or flightsim lockup. We also allow you to pause and
or save a flight so you can resume it at a later time. This rule is in place to assure a realistic flight
experience and to prevent excessive logging of pireps in a 24-hour period.
- Inactive policy
Pilots are required to log one flight every 30 days to remain active. After 35 days, you will be
automatically marked inactive and be removed from your hub's roster soon thereafter. You are only allowed to have 3 inactive periods in any calendar year. If you are
deleted because of inactivity, you must re-join the airline and you will lose your previous pilot ID
number (PID) and logbook. If you should decide to re-join the airline after you have been
terminated, we will not be able to restore your logbook or give you credit for your previous hours.
If you plan to remain inactive for greater than 30 days and do not wish to be terminated, you must
request an LOA (Leave of Absence).
- L.O.A.
Leave of Absences are approved by hub directors for a maximum period of six (6) months and
are requested via the Pilot Record Maintenance page. After the six-month term, the pilot may
contact the hub director and request that the LOA be extended an additional six months if
necessary. Any pilot who fails to make contact with their hub staff after the initial six-month period
has expired will be changed to inactive status with or without prior notification. After this takes
place, the pilot will have 15 days to file a flight report or contact their hub director. In the event
that a flight report is not filed in this 15-day period, the pilot runs the risk of being terminated from
the airline by the automated Pilot Report (PIREP) system, unless the pilot makes contact with his
or her hub director.
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- Flights, Inter-Hub and Codeshare Flying
Fly the routes that apply to you by following the previous company policy. Flights may be chosen
by clicking on the link itineraries in any one of AFA's hubs. Itineraries will display all flights which
are available to be flown within the hub. Pilots may also chose to fly inter-hub flights from other
AFA hubs in order to expand their flight routes along with codeshare routes from Pacific Airways
hubs. A typical inter-hub flight example is explained below:
Example 1 (Interhub Flight): If pilot "A" flies a Detroit flight to Atlanta he/she may fly ANY flight
the Atlanta hub has to offer. Once he/she is finished flying Atlanta flights and wants to return
home he simply flies a return flight from Atlanta back to Detroit.
This inter-hub and codeshare flight system would allow a pilot to fly to more cities besides just
flying to one city and returning back to their hub immediately and allows them to experience
different hub or airline operations.
Example 2 (Codeshare Flight): If pilot "B" flies an AFA Atlanta flight to Pacific Airways Miami
he/she may fly ANY flight the Pacific Airways Miami hub has to offer. Once he/she is finished
flying Miami flights and wants to return home he simply flies a return flight back to Atlanta. Please
note that any Pacific Airways (PAY) codeshare flight needs to be flown with Pacific Airways
aircraft.
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- Pilot Reporting System (PRS)
AFA requires every pilot to complete a flight report once they have completed a flight by filling out
the flight report form online from each hub's website. The flight report forms are automated and
require that you select the aircraft flown, either the departure and arrival cities (ICAO codes) or
the flight number, enter hours and minutes of flight (engine startup to gate arrival), and enter flight
number. ALWAYS start your flight reports by entering the correct Zulu DATE and Zulu
DEPARTURE TIME so that your reports appear in a logical format in your logbook. Please DO
NOT log more than 17 hours of flights in a 24-hour period per real life regulations as anything
over that is considered excessive flight logging as defined by real life aviation regulations and can
lead to suspension or even dismissal. Once again please file reports in the logical format which
was discussed in the topic "Regulations on flights".
You can access the PRS system by going to your AFA hub page and clicking on the "Flight
Report" link.
NOTE: Always use capital letters for your Pilot ID when logging into the PRS system i.e. AFA9999 instead of afa9999.
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- VATSIM and Multiplayer Flying
AFA management encourages the use of VATSIM (Virtual Air Traffic Simulation Network) online
flying. VATSIM provides real time ATC control over the internet through a program called
Squawkbox or FSinn. This allows a pilot to fly online in real time with other pilots and receive real time ATC
control. We only encourage the use of flying online with VATSIM however you DO NOT have to
be fly online in order to participate in AFA. VATSIM allows for the most realistic experience in
flight simulation allowing you to see other pilots and aircraft online and also allowing you to
receive real time ATC over the internet through voice and/or text.
If you are interested in participating with online flying with VATSIM we encourage you to join us
for our online training. We have a Vatsim Tutorial to help you
get started flying online. Moreover we encourage you to visit our forums in case you need help, to
arrange meetings with fellow APG or to find out the destination of our next event. AFA pilots who
fly online using VATSIM are asked to use their AFA PID as their official callsign. Lastly your voice
callsign during radio transmissions is the English/American pronunciation of "AFA? (AY-F-AY).
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- Pilot Ranks
As a new pilot with AFA, you will start as a first officer. The ranking is based in hours flown in
other words, experience. For promotions see the chart below:
| Rank |
Hours |
| First officer |
0-20 |
| Captain |
21-39 |
| ATP First Officer |
40-79 |
| ATP Captain |
80-299 |
| ATP Senior Captain |
300 - 599 |
| ATP Commander |
600 - 999 |
| ATP Senior Commander |
1000 + |
Please remember that you may fly any route as long as you follow the following:
Pilots with less than 20 hours ... Can fly category 1 or 2 aircraft routes.
Pilots with 20 hours to less than 40 hours...Can fly category 1, 2, 3 aircraft routes.
Pilots with 40 hours or more...Can fly any route.
Aircraft Categories
Category 1 - Beechcraft B1900D
Category 2 - DeHavilland Dash 8, Canadair Regional Jet CRJ200, Embraer EMB-170
Category 3 - Airbus A320, Boeing 717, Boeing 737
Category 4 - Airbus A330, Boeing 757, Boeing 767
Category 5 - Boeing 747, Boeing 777
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- Transferring Previous VA hours to American Flight Airways rosters.
American Flight Airways allows a maximum of 50 hours to be transferred from another
established VA. This brings the experienced pilot who is joining to the rank of ATP First Officer
and will allow them to fly any route and aircraft without restriction. Send in a request for credit of
previous hours to your Hub Director along with a link to the roster where they can be verified.
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- Forums
American Flight Airways has a very active Pilot Forum and we encourage each pilot to sign up (with their real name)
to participate in our lively discussions. Furthermore our forums give a wealth of information on the latest events, latest fixes to aircraft and so forth.
Furthermore most answers to general support questions can be found in our Pilot Forums. If you cant find the answer to what youre looking for there,
feel free to post your question and another pilot or staff member will usually answer your question within a matter of hours. Lastly our FORUMS are also
the place where you can hang out after a flight and just discuss various topics with fellow pilots in our OPEN Forum.
Therefore pilots are strongly encouraged to register in the APG Pilots Forum. When you register, make sure to use your first and last name to speed up the activation process.
Do not use nicknames when registering. Applications to register may be denied if you do not do so and you will have to register again. The forum is the best source for online events details,
aircraft news, route changes, opening of staff positions and other random information.
The APG Pilots Forum is one of the most friendly and informative forums in the virtual airline community. Everything mentioned in the first 2 paragraphs is at
your fingertips as well as great flying stories, interactive discussions on any variety of subject and just plain fun stuff to read and link to. The management of APG is committed to retaining a friendly, informative and respectful forum. We will not tolerate any type of disrespect of any members opinions, disrespectful postings and any type of flame wars. Failure to comply with this policy can result in anything from deletion of the post or topic, to suspension or even termination from the airline.
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- Contacting AFA Headquarters
Our main office is located in Detroit, MI, USA. Our main company e-mail address is ceo@flyafa.com. A list of all AFA staff can be found here. Any of
our pilots or someone interested in the virtual airline can e-mail AFA's staff at the previous e-mail
address.
It is also encouraged for our pilots to register in the APG Message Forums. When you
signup, use your first and last name to speed up the activation process. The forum is the best
source for aircraft news, route changes, opening of staff positions and other random information.
We have discussions with topics widely ranging, so get your questions answered today and open
discussions with us. There is a link to the forums from the AFA headquarters page. AFA's website
is located at: http://www.flyafa.com
COME JOIN US ON AMERICAN FLIGHT AIRWAYS!
If you have any comments and/or ideas please e-mail us.
By the way, This is just a virtual airline. It's not real.
It's just for fun
Let's have fun!
