Delta Virtual Airlines Water Cooler - Schedule Database Update

Delta Virtual Airlines Water Cooler | Airline Operations | Schedule Database Update

DVA2887
Senior Captain, A320
OLP, 737-ATP, VFRADV
E-MAIL

Joined on January 30 2006
50 State Club
Globetrotter
Tri-Jet Triumph
US Coastal Club
Millennium Club
DVA Fifteen-Year Anniversary
US Mountaineer Club
Toulouse 250 Club
Online Eight Century

Charlotte, NC

1,286 legs, 1,796.2 hours
840 legs, 1,047.8 hours online
1,268 legs, 1,774.2 hours ACARS
31 legs, 49.6 hours event
3 legs dispatched, 2.5 hours

Posted onPost created on November 11 2015 08:35 ET by Andrew Vane

This is a carryover of a response I posted here: https://www.deltava.org/thread.do?id=0x1f05e

Thank you for your patience as we work on the schedule issue. I wanted to provide some info on our status and update you all.

I realize this may be getting old but the schedule updates are one of the biggest and most unpredictable costs incurred by our organization. Our former providers have increased the costs to unaffordable levels which has forced us to seek other avenues of obtaining the data. Frankly, we were spoiled for a long time with our former provider.

With our former provider, it was a flat rate for the quarterly update that gave us all the flights we needed. Our web site synced with their data very well and the cost was minimal. Then, they got bought out by a foreign company and increased their rates 500%. As a not for profit group, we simply can't afford that sort of a hit, especially when at one time in the past they provided the info for free.

The other avenues we're pursuing are based on tiered pricing of information, so many cents per query, and so forth. The costs per query are low but when you consider we're trying to update 10,000 daily flights it can add up and can also incur uncontrollable costs if not kept in check. We recently had a bill for a backup of our data spike unexpectedly. it wasn't unaffordable but was alarming as paying that rate would not be sustainable for us long term.

I just wanted to add a bit more explanation with regard to the schedule. We've made more progress recently than in the past but its still been taking some time. Remember, we all on staff do this for free in our spare time so fitting the work required into our daily lives can be a challenge, especially when some of the coordination work requires DVA work during daily business hours. I realize you all may be tired of hearing that we're working on it but we truly are. Believe me, we're just as frustrated answering "schedule out of date" posts as you all are posting them or trying to find a flight today that doesn't exist in our schedule. Thanks so much for your patience and for being a part of our fine organization.

If anyone sees a flight in the real world today that is not in our schedule, please open a help desk and provide info on the flight as well as a source and I'll do what I can to get it added. The format should be similar to the following for a future flight Delta has to Iceland:

DL260 MSP2155 – 0900+1KEF 752 D
DL261 KEF0830 – 1000MSP 752 D

This info was from this source: http://airlineroute.net/2015/11/09/dl-mspkef-s16/ and in fact is one I want to add. Don't give me GMT time or it'll take time to convert to local time for our database.

I"m not going to change equipment for existing flights but I will add flights that aren't appearing in our schedule as time allows. I may have created a monster and get 1,000 requests but the time invested is always worth it for you all! smile

Thanks for your patience as we continue to work on this. We're getting as tired of it as much as you all are. Once we get a more recent update imported, we'll let you know here or via news entry.

Andrew Vane (DVA2887)

DVA8920
Senior Captain, B737-800
OLP
DISPATCHER
E-MAIL

Joined on August 12 2010
50 State Club
Globetrotter
US Mountaineer Club
Everett 1500 Club
DVA Ten-Year Anniversary
Event Half Century Club
Two Million Mile Club
Online Millennium Club
Bi-Millennium Club
US Coastal Club

"Any landing you can walk away from..."
Smyrna, GA

2,135 legs, 5,362.8 hours
1,073 legs, 2,508.7 hours online
2,044 legs, 5,156.3 hours ACARS
89 legs, 220.5 hours event
0 legs dispatched, 3.4 hours

Posted onPost created on November 11 2015 15:12 ET by Daniel Wilbanks

You guys at Sr. Staff are awesome! Thanks for your hard work dealing with us pain in the butt pilots smile

One of these days, we may just have to hold a staff appreciation party in one of our 767 hangers!

Daniel Wilbanks (DVA8920)

DVA10736
Captain, B777-200

Joined on May 13 2012
Globetrotter
DVA Ten-Year Anniversary
Everett 500 Club
Two Million Mile Club
Black Pearl Club
Nine Century Club

Milton, ON Canada

958 legs, 5,608.2 hours
47 legs, 280.8 hours online
953 legs, 5,587.3 hours ACARS

Posted onPost created on November 11 2015 17:38 ET by Florin Marinache

Thank you Andrew and everyone on staff for your time and dedication you put into running this VA which we all enjoy, much appreciated!

Florin Marinache

Captain, B777-200

DVA12719
Senior Captain, DC-8-61
OLP

Joined on July 26 2015
Piranha Club
50 State Club
Century Club
US Capital Club
Piston Prop Professional
DVA Five-Year Anniversary

"Let the FO land"
Boca Raton, FL

153 legs, 258.9 hours
32 legs, 43.1 hours online
145 legs, 252.0 hours ACARS
16 legs, 23.9 hours event
12 legs dispatched, 16.4 hours

Posted onPost created on November 11 2015 19:15 ET by Yisrael Wealcatch

Andrew, maybe you can put an optional donation button on the home page that anyone can access and donate any amount of money they would like. Not sure what technical challenges this may pose, but if it is possible, it will definitely help pay our expenses.

Yisrael Wealcatch (DVA12719)

DVA12617
Chief Pilot, A350-900
OLP, VFRADV
DISPATCHER
E-MAIL

Joined on April 23 2015
B757 100 Club
Eurocap Club
Millennium Club
Toulouse 500 Club
Online Triple Century Club
DVA Ten-Year Anniversary

"Go Utes!"
Herriman, UT

1,288 legs, 2,994.7 hours
398 legs, 833.6 hours online
1,269 legs, 2,952.5 hours ACARS
25 legs, 78.6 hours event
39 legs dispatched, 174.2 hours

Posted onPost created on November 12 2015 00:25 ET by Joe Burner

Andrew, and the Senior Admin staff, I want to thank you all for your alls hard work. You all are awesome in my book. When I came to DVA earlier this year I had read a news article before signing up, and our President Terry Eshenour was mentioned in this article, I believe it was the New York times article, I was drawn to Delta Virtual Airlines and I will say I am always impressed with all the support that is given here. Everyone is super awesome here in my book.

Joe Burner (DVA12617)

Posted onPost created on November 12 2015 08:33 ET by Andrew Vane

Thanks for the kind words. I was merely trying to update all of you on the status.

All our staff, senior, program, dispatch, events, flight academy, etc. love what we do and enjoy DVA as much as you all do.

Yisrael: We do have a yearly selling of DVA "shares" and its coming up soon. Stay tuned. Its completely optional, inexpensive, and anyone can participate.

Andrew Vane (DVA2887)

DVA7171
Senior Captain, B757-200

Joined on March 14 2009
50 State Club
Event Half Century Club
Everett 250 Club
Online Quintuple Century Club
Seven Century Club
Black Pearl Club
DVA Fifteen-Year Anniversary

"Walk away from all your landings..."
Sebring, FL

725 legs, 1,676.2 hours
573 legs, 1,401.2 hours online
716 legs, 1,660.6 hours ACARS
56 legs, 127.6 hours event

Posted onPost created on November 12 2015 09:52 ET by Sergio Lopez

Sorry to hear that the company hicked their prices, I'm amazed they are still afloat, they probably lost a lot of clients like us. Keep up the good work. Can;t wait for the new updated routes!

Sergio Lopez (DVA7171)

Posted onPost created on November 12 2015 11:36 ET by Andrew Vane

DVA is not the moneymaker for the big companies. Its the travel agencies and other corporations that benefit from the info that pay the higher dollars.

Andrew Vane (DVA2887)

Posted onPost created on November 12 2015 14:30 ET by Joe Burner

Hey Andrew, is there anything I can do to help? I have a Delta app that can pull the flight schedules. I know that is a long shot for current flight status, but it might work?

Joe Burner (DVA12617)

DVA9545
Senior Captain, B777-200
OLP, 737-ATP

Joined on March 03 2011
50 State Club
Globetrotter
Quad-Jet Quartermaster
US Coastal Club
US Mountaineer Club
Million Mile Club
Events Double Century Club
DVA Ten-Year Anniversary
Toulouse 500 Club
Bi-Millennium Club
Online Twenty Century

"YUPIIIII"
Goiás Brazil

2,503 legs, 5,060.7 hours
2,332 legs, 4,782.3 hours online
2,495 legs, 5,031.1 hours ACARS
271 legs, 683.8 hours event

Posted onPost created on November 12 2015 15:21 ET by Thiago Braga

Nice Andrew

Thiago Braga (DVA9545)

Posted onPost created on November 12 2015 16:32 ET by Thiago Braga

Nice Andrew.

Thanks for the update

Thiago Braga (DVA9545)

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