A message from the big shotJan 31, 2009

It’s been too long since we last updated this message. So here goes… (And let's hope it's not another two years shall we?!)

We hope you enjoy the Virtual WestJet web site, and take advantage of some of the unique aspects of being a part of our community.  There is a fantastic group of people that have been around this virtual airline since its inception and many more have joined along the way. The forums provide a great place to share stories, photos, opinions, and ideas. Activity that extends across our web site and throughout our virtual airline with on and offline flights creates an ambient environment for this community. Many of our members operate real-time flights using WestJet’s schedule. We highly encourage all members to promote this realistic simulation of our model airline. The quintessential focus of our virtual airline is embodied in members who engage in this level of realism.

Retrospect
Last year was clearly the slowest in terms of progress over the last 4 years. The first three years had seen incredible developments from our dedicated staff. Our last major development, a new logbook (part of MyVirtual WestJet) and promotion system, spurred record growth in terms of pilot generated traffic. We enjoyed the rather exciting response and will use this as motivation to continue to build other exciting applications for our members. We've always tried to caution, however, that the current staff is in this for the long haul. In other words, we are interested in building and developing a long-term virtual airline. This also means that in the short-term, in day-to-day life, we may not always get around to working on the internals of our virtual airline. It is a vastly time consuming job, but we have always enjoyed it. Despite the lack of updates on our web site, we continue to see membership grow at the same rate it’s always grown. A steady new pace of pilots and fresh faces keeps the activity of our virtual airline near its peak. In other words, the natural attrition of members seeking a change of scenery is outnumbered by our new “Winglets” as we like to call them.

Looking Forward
On a somber note, this year is going to be a fundamentally different year for the world. We are experiencing a structural change in our economic system that stemmed from too many excesses. Those are now being corrected. It is without a doubt that from these difficult economic times will shape a bold new future, radically different from what we know and understand now. Primarily, the rapid increase in technological advances can assure us that we will find ourselves, once again, on a new course—a sustainable path. But not without this fundamental and necessary change that is taking place now. With that in mind, we’ve already heard that Microsoft has closed its development studio for Flight Simulator, but we should suspect this void will ultimately be filled in some shape or form. This directly impacts our unique hobby as a whole; on the other hand, the resolve of our community will undoubtedly pull together.

Despite the gloomy outlook that we've all heard, this really gives us time to remember what is really important in life—family, friends, and our health. Flight simulation can be a serious hobby for some of us, and much time can be sunk into our adventures. However, we remind members that there are others around seeking attention as well. It is during these times that our friends and family, and most certainly our health, should come first.

As always, we remain dedicated to our members—thank you for your dedicated loyalty in return.  And, we can't thank WestJet enough for allowing us the freedom to provide our members with the most realistic simulation of the airline that we can bring. I highly recommend taking a journey on a real WestJet flight if you haven’t already. It is a fantastic experience that all Virtual WestJetters should try.

Your friend,

Darcy Broda                           President and CVO

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