General Terms and Conditions

Organisation
The Dutch Virtual Area Control Center, hereafter mentioned as Dutch VACC, is part of the VATSIM organisation and responsible for the area covered by the Amsterdam FIR up to FL245 and MUAC DELTA sector (FL245+). The Dutch VACC is organised in the VATEUD division. The Dutch VACC accepts donations for e.g. website hosting. The terms and conditions of donations are described here. Membership is free of charge.

Objective
The Dutch VACC exists to uphold a professional, realistic, and consistently high standard of virtual air traffic control within the Netherlands on the VATSIM network. The organization is committed to accurately model real-world Dutch air traffic management procedures, thereby ensuring operational integrity at all times.

The Dutch VACC serves as a structured platform for education and development, enabling members to acquire, apply, and advance knowledge and skills in accordance with internationally recognized aviation standards.

Definitions

Director
Head of the Dutch VACC staff. Must be a member of good standing and be a member of the Dutch VACC for at least one year. Must have the rating of C1 or higher. The Director is selected by VATEUD. Other requirements may apply.

Staff member
Member working in the management of the Dutch VACC, coordinated by the Director. Must be a member of good standing and be a member of the Dutch VACC for at least one month.

  • Public Relations Manager, Webmaster –> No rating required, should have a demonstrable familiarity with VATSIM and Dutch VACC
  • Assistant Training Director, Operations Director (Minimum S2)
  • Membership Director (Minimum S3)
  • Events Coordinator (Minimum S3 + Tier 1 Approach)
  • Training Director, Deputy Director (Minimum C1)
  • All staff members with a rating requirement of S3 and lower should have the ambition of obtaining the C1 rating.

Staff
The active management of the Dutch VACC.

Official website
https://www.dutchvacc.nl, hereafter mentioned as the website.

Official forum
https://www.dutchvacc.nl/forums, hereafter mentioned as the forum.

Official Discord server
https://www.dutchvacc.nl/discord/, hereafter mentioned as the Discord server.

Parent organisations
VATSIM – Virtual Air Traffic Simulation Network – http://www.vatsim.net
VATEMEA – VATSIM Europe, Middle-East, Africa Region (no official website)
VATEUD – VATSIM European Division – http://www.vateud.net

Rules
The specific Dutch VACC rules as mentioned below and the general rules & terms of the parent organizations, hereafter mentioned as the rules.

Membership

Application
Any person who agrees with the objective and rules may apply for a membership and by approval of the staff become a member of the Dutch VACC. The applicant must have a valid VATSIM ID and email. The applicant must select the correct Division/Region within the VATSIM membership database. Applicants must apply with their full name as required by VATSIM.
Once an application is approved by the staff, the new member will have full access to the website as well as the forum.

Specific rules of the Dutch VACC
On the VATSIM network, on the forum and when representing him-/herself as a member of the Dutch VACC within the Flight Simulation community on the internet, members are required to abide by the following rules:

  • The regulations of the parent organisations of the Dutch VACC.
  • Treat each other with mutual respect, do not threaten or harass other members.
  • File any complaints regarding matters within the Dutch VACC to the staff, do not air grievances openly.
  • Adhere to instructions of the staff regarding manning of ATC-positions within the Dutch VACC, see also Controller Policy.
  • Follow debates and information provided on Discord, in the forum as well as on the website.
  • When participating in the Discord server, the server rules.

entitled to:

  • Provide ATC-service within the Amsterdam FIR (see Controller Policy).
  • Receive training in ATC procedures.
  • Recommendations for upgrades as practically feasible and when they are considered competent.
  • Use the facilities on Discord, the website and the forum.

Visiting controllers
Visiting controllers are only allowed to provide ATC in the Amsterdam FIR after approval by the Training Department. Each occasion will be reviewed separately. See Controller Policy.

Suspension
The staff has the right to suspend, without further notice, the membership of any member of the Dutch VACC if he or she has violated the rules of the Dutch VACC or their parent organisations or instructions of the staff. The staff has to inform the member about the reason for and the duration of this suspension as soon as reasonably practicable.

Information on the suspension will be appended to the VATSIM membership record of the member.
The member can appeal within seven days after the submission of the suspension. Staff will review the appeal within fourteen days after receiving. After reviewing the staff will make a decision. In the case the suspension was not justified, the appended information regarding the suspension will be removed from the VATSIM membership record and the suspension will be revoked immediately.

During the time of the suspension the member may not:

  • Man ATC-positions within the EHAA FIR and/or MUAC DELTA Sector.
  • Vote on issues concerning the Dutch VACC.
  • Engage in any debate on the forum and Discord.

Termination of the membership
Upon termination of the membership of the Dutch VACC, the member loses all rights within the area of responsibility of the Dutch VACC. The staff has no obligation as to retain or remove traces (like documents or Discord/forum posts) from the member.

Termination by the member
Any member can terminate his or her membership at any time by sending an e-mail to the webmaster.

Termination by the staff of the Dutch VACC
The staff has the right to terminate the membership of any member of the Dutch VACC if he or she – after at least one temporary suspension – continues to violate the rules or instructions from the staff. The staff has to inform the member about the reason for the termination of his or her membership as soon as reasonably practicable.

Information on the exclusion will be appended to the VATSIM membership record of the member.
The member can appeal within seven days after the termination of his membership. Staff will review the appeal within fourteen days after receiving. After reviewing the staff will make a decision. In the case the termination was not justified, the appended information regarding the termination will be removed from the VATSIM membership record and the member will be reinstalled.

Management

Daily business of the Dutch VACC is being handled by the staff. The staff shall, within the constraints of the constitution, work for the members of the Dutch VACC and defend their interests.

Staff positions
ACCNL1 – Director
ACCNL2 – Deputy Director
ACCNL3 – Operations Director
ACCNL4 – Training Director
ACCNL5 – Assistant Training Director
ACCNL6 – Webmaster
ACCNL7 – Membership Director
ACCNL8 – Public Relations Manager
ACCNL9 – Events Director

Duties
Staff members are required to:

  • See to it that all members obey the rules of this constitution.
  • Respond to external communication from members within their field of responsibility within one week.
  • Respond to internal communication from other staff members within three days.
  • Maintain an ordered record of communication, documents and agreements in order for this to be handed over to a successor.
  • Temporarily hand over their responsibility during vacation periods to another member of the staff.
  • Resign with at least one month’s notice by letter to the director.

Election & appointment
A staff member is elected by other staff members. Whenever there is a vacant position, which is to be filled, the Director will inform their members. It is up to the staff to decide if a vacant position is to be filled. Staff members are appointed for life.

Dismissal
Staff members are dismissed by the director. Staff members can only be dismissed after violating the rules of the VACC or VATSIM. Discussions should be made with the affected staff member and efforts should be made to avoid dismissal. Staff members can only be dismissed after being discussed with all staff members and if more than 50% of the staff approve the dismissal.

Resign
All staff members are entitled to resign. They should inform the director well in advance and it is considered good manners to perform their duties until a successor has been appointed. The staff member resigning should help the successor and introduce him/her to the task and hand over all material to run the office.