START HERE: PILOT DISPATCH CENTER
Welcome to the Thursday Night Flight Club Pilot Dispatch Center. START HERE and then go through the steps to join the FLIGHT!
OUR FLIGHT RULES ARE SIMPLE:
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Flights are determined at least the Tuesday prior to flight.
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Average flight time ranges from around 90 minutes to two hours or two-and-a-half hours
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There are two types of flights, a point-to-point flight and a time-on-target flight.
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Pilots can use X-Plane or MSFS
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Pilots MUST FLY on VATSIM
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Read the Check List to make sure you have all of the information you need.
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Join the BRAVO 737 Thursday Night Flight Club Discord to maintain company communication
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If you have any questions, check out our FAQ section
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MOST IMPORTANTLY! Have fun - the flight is about having fun - it's like business casual here - don't take yourself too serious, just serious enough.
TWO TYPES OF FLIGHTS!
POINT TO POINT
All pilots participating will fly between a designated departure and arrival airport. Pilots should be ready to start pushback at by the time indicated on the weekly route.
DEPART 0120z
TIME ON TARGET
All pilots will be provided a designated destination for the flight as well as a time on target by which pilots should land. Choice of departure airports are at the discretion of the pilots.
ARRIVE 0330z
CHECKLIST: PREPARE FOR TAKE-OFF!
FLIGHT RESOURCES
Make sure you have all of the simulation assets you need to ensure a great flight!
MANNERS PLEASE
We take our flying and professionalism seriously. Please review our pilot code of conduct.
PUSHING BACK
During the Thursday Night Flight Club flights, we ask all pilots are ready to pushback no later than ten minutes prior to announced zulu departure time. This does not necessarily mean you will be pushed by ATC or via ground calls. However, it does indicate you are ready and able to fly when ready.
This includes any clearances for IFR/VFR, etc. If you aren't ready to push at that time, you may experience a longer delay in departing, or not being able to participate in the greater flight.
We encourage those who have simulator or computer malfunctions to realistically gauge whether they can continue at the original departure airport, or if they should file an alternative flight plan at a different airport in order to land at the final destination.
NOTAM TO ALL PILOTS
The Thursday Night Flight Club is an opportunity for flight simulation enthusiasts to come together during a fixed time and enjoy flying online with others who value the experience and immersion of flying.
PLEASE REMEMBER:
HAVE FUN: We want all pilots to enjoy themselves. Although different in many ways, most love the ability to have guaranteed online immersion and the potential of VATSIM ATC. Please allow others to take the time in this friendly environment.
RESPECT OTHERS: There are always amazing photos, videos, take-offs, landings and weather. Respect others while they experience this in their sim. The TNFC has a specific Discord room to post videos and images to share with others.
SPEAK LIKE A PROFESSIONAL ON VATSIM: It's not real, but we want the ATC experience to feel as such. We ask all TNFC participants to be courteous to the volunteers on VATSIM as well as other pilots (TNFC participants and others) when speaking to the controllers. This is ESPECIALLY IMPORTANT if you are using a BISON call sign. We want to build a reputation of a professional and courteous organization. Your voice is our voice online!
VOICES FOR ALL ON DISCORD: One of the fun aspects of flying online is chatting with others "behind the scenes" on Discord. We encourage this comradery, but do request an equal and measured amount of conversation. Remember, many of our pilots are streaming and/or recording their flights to share with their audiences online. Vulgar, excessive or aggressive conversation will not be tolerated.
ENCOURAGE AND HELP OTHER PILOTS: There are different levels of experience flying during the Thursday Night Flight Club. Encourage and help other pilots who are earnestly making an effort to learn and better themselves in the flying hobby. We all started somewhere and showing "what you know" to someone who may, or may not have had the experience isn't the core of our community.
WHAT'S UP WITH THE FLYING BISON
If you are flying the BRAVO 737 House liveries, you will notice the Flying Bison emblem on the nose of each aircraft.
As BRAVO 737 is based in Oklahoma, USA, it makes sense the call sign (and mascot) of the community is a flying bison. We continue to call that out over air traffic control as the stampede rumbles to the destination.
FLIGHT RESOURCES
Download the appropriate resources for your flight simulation platform. We encourage pilots to download and install these files to increase the immersion experience of our Thursday night flyers! We fly exclusively on VATSIM Any questions, feel free to contact us. If you have a LIVERY or CSL file you'd like to share for download, please click here.
MSFS FILES
XPLANE FILES
OPTIONAL FILES
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
Do I have to fly on VATSIM?
Yes, all flights must be conducted in real-time on the VATSIM network.
What is the BRAVO 737 Call Sign on VATSIM?
The official BRAVO 737 Call Sign is the word "BISON" and the number of your flight. For instance, your call sign would be "BISON 45" or "BISON 298" When filing your flight plan on the VATSIM network, you can utilize BZN plus your flight number. In the NOTES at the bottom of the plan, type: Callsign=BISON and your number.
Do I have to fly in the BRAVO 737 Livery?
No. We love to see a stampede of BISON, but feel free to fly in your preferred livery. If you have a custom livery you'd like us to share with others, submit it via the contact form on this page.
What type of aircraft can/should I fly?
Generally, we fly airliners such as the Boeing series or Airbus series. You can fly other aircraft, however, we have found it is difficult to maintain the constraints of time when flying either much faster or slower aircraft.
Where can I find the files I need?
Most of the additional files outside of Microsoft Flight Simulator or X-Plane can either be found in our Resources section or via the Flightsim.to or X-Plane Store websites.
Why can't I see accurate livery/model matching?
In order to see accurate livery/model matching, you must have the correct CSL files (X-Plane/xPilot) or VMR and aircraft files (MSFS2020/vPilot). We have tried to offer as many as we can, but if we have omitted an aircraft livery, or you'd like to add your own, please contact us here.
How long are each flight?
Each flight should last approximately 2 to 2.5 hours.
What if I'd like to choose the flight?
Just let us know. We are always interested in what others would like to fly.
I have a custom livery, may I share it with the group?
Yes, just contact us here and we will make arrangements to coordinate the download of the file.
What flight simulator may I use?
Generally, our pilots use P3D, MSFS2020 or X-Plane 11/12.
Is there a Discord Channel?
Yes, we have a Discord Channel found here.
TNFC FOUNDERS
The Flight Club was started in 2021. These gentleman founded the Thursday Night Flight Club.
PILOT STREAMS
