Thank you for your interest in the Virtual Royal Air Force, we are pleased that you are interested in joining us. We are a unique organisation with a challenging training curriculum that requires determination and perseverance - new pilots must undergo an average of 20 hours of flight training before being considered a front line pilot.

Requirements for Membership

All applications are screened for validity and compliance. Applicants must:

1. Have a valid VATSIM CID.
2. Be at least 18 years of age.
3. Have at at least 25 hours of IFR flight time on the VATSIM network.
4. Be able to file a flight plan, fly SIDs, STARs and approaches using raw data, follow airspace restrictions and communicate with ATC
5. A good working knowledge of a supported simulator:
   1. Prepar3D
   2. X-Plane 11
   3. Microsoft Flight Simulator X
   4. Microsoft Flight Simulator: Steam Edition
   5. Microsoft Flight Simulator (MSFS)
6. Own a working microphone for use with Discord and VATSIM.
7. Know how to use vPilot\xPilot
8. Agree to the vRAF Privacy Policy. Found Here
9. Agree to abide by the vRAF Operations Manual. Found Here

Application Process

Step 1: Registration

Tick the box at the bottom of this section to confirm that you meet the membership requirements and then complete the online registration form.

Step 2: Theoretical Knowledge Assessment

After initial screening, a short theoretical exam will be sent to the e-mail address provided in your application. Please remember to check your junk mail.

Step 3: Flying Grading

Applicants who pass the theoretical exam will be invited to conduct a short flight with a qualified flight instructor. The purpose of Flying Grading is to assess your basic flying skills and readiness for training. The test will last approximately one hour and will assess the following:

1. General airmanship, situational awareness and workload management
2. Communications with ATC
3. Instrument flying including an instrument departure, radar vectored ILS approach and procedural non-precision approach
4. Visual circuits

All exercises must be manually flown using raw data. The use of autopilot, autothrottle and flight directors is prohibited.

Note: at the discretion of Air Command, Flying Grading may be waived for candidates with an instrument rating or a VATSIM pilot rating of P2 or greater.

Good Luck!

By ticking the box you confirm that you meet all the requirements for membership stated above.