Cross the Ditch 5 - Spring 2011

[philipdp]

Cross the Ditch 5
Saturday 10th December 2011 1900-1100 UTC / Sunday 11th December 0800-0000 NZDT / 0600-2200 AEDT




Cross the Ditch 5: Spring 2011


It's spring once again in the Southern Hemisphere, and that means two things: changeable weather and Cross the Ditch!

In association with VATSIM's Tenth Anniversary celebrations, VATNZ and VATPAC are proud to present: Cross the Ditch 5 - Spring 2011.

• Check out the website: http://crosstheditch.net
  
• Apply to provide ATC now!
  
• Book your Flights now!
  
• Check out the Virtual Airline Leaderboard

New for Cross the Ditch 5

• Wave Event
  This event is structured in waves - each  airport has a two hour departure window before the action moves on to  the next. This is designed to concentrate traffic and maximise the  multiplayer online experience.
  
• New Airports
  This spring Cross the Ditch debuts three new airports: Gold Coast (YBCG) and Hobart (YMHB) in Australia, and Hamilton (NZHN) in New Zealand. These smaller airports come with their own unique challenges and are an exciting addition to the Cross the Ditch mix.

What's it all about?

For sixteen hours this December, the skies over the Tasman Sea  between Australia and New Zealand will be filled with aircraft all on a  mission to Cross the Ditch.

An example of that typical down-under understatement, this "ditch" is  over 1100nm wide. The flight routes all range from two and a half to  three hours flight time.

Throughout the event, the Oceania region's two divisions will be  providing full gate-to-gate ATC coverage, in the Southern Hemisphere's  premiere oceanic event.

This is a great opportunity to experience Oceanic flying without the  need to commit to an eight-hour flight! If you're new to Oceanic Flying, our reporting tool makes taking part a breeze.


Event Times

This sixteen hour event is timed to allow pilots from all over the world join the fun:

• UTC: Saturday 10th December 2011 19:00 - Sunday 11th December 2011 11:00
  
• AEDT: Sunday 11th December 2011 06:00 - Sunday 11th December 2011 22:00
  
• NZDT: Sunday 11th November 2011 08:00 - Monday 12th December 2011 00:00

Waves

This season's event is organised in waves. Each airport will have a  two hour departure window, during which time flights will be able to  leave for the next destination. As the window closes, the departure  window will open at the next destination.

Given each of the flights is 2.5 - 3hrs in length, the previous  wave's flights will be arriving at the same airport as the next wave  departs, maximising the amount of traffic at each airport.

The individual routes are designed to ensure as much opposing traffic enroute as possible.

Each flight passes from one Oceania division to the other, and the result is eight mini-flyins over the course of sixteen hours!


The Waves for Cross the Ditch 5 - Spring 2011 are:

[list=1]

• 1900-2100Z -- Christchurch (NZCH) to Melbourne (YMML)
• 2100-2300Z -- Melbourne (YMML) to Auckland (NZAA)
• 2300-0100Z -- Auckland (NZAA) to Gold Coast (YBCG)
• 0100-0300Z -- Gold Coast (YBCG) to Hamilton (NZHN)
• 0300-0500Z -- Hamilton (NZHN) to Sydney (YSSY)
• 0500-0700Z -- Sydney (YSSY) to Wellington (NZWN)
• 0700-0900Z -- Wellington (NZWN) to Hobart (YMHB)

Calling all Pilots and Controllers

Flight plans are available from the Flight Plans section.

Book your flights now from the Flight Bookings page. Bookings made on this site help us plan for the event, and will also show up in vroute.

Controllers wanting to get in on the action can also apply now at the event's ATC Applications page.


Cross the Ditch is brought to you by VATPAC and VATNZ:

[philipdp]

Noble Air is currently coming first with flight bookings. Get your bookings in to make sure it stays that way! 
http://crosstheditch.net

[Tony Forrest]

C'mon you guy's. Get your bookings in