Building A Modern UK & European Virtual Airline For Flight Simulation Pilots

Where It Started

My passion for aviation started long before JetVA existed. Due to my eyesight, becoming a commercial pilot was never a realistic path for me, so the next best thing was to bring aviation into flight simulation.

Around 2007, I began building a dedicated simulator environment using equipment from Flightdeck Solutions in Canada. It was not a motion platform, but a dedicated flight deck setup that allowed the aviation passion to develop into something much bigger.

My virtual airline career began in 2008 with Thomson Virtual, where I served as HR Director and managed the human resources side of the community. That role taught me an important lesson that still shapes JetVA today: pilots need fast, fair and responsive support.

Account issues, applications, pilot queries and community matters should not be left waiting. A virtual airline works best when the people behind it are active, responsive and committed.

The Creation Of TUIVirtual And JetVA

When Nabeel released phpVMS, I became one of the early adopters of the system and I remain involved with the phpVMS community to this day. phpVMS gave virtual airlines a stronger platform to build from, and it became clear that I wanted to create and develop my own systems rather than simply take part as a pilot or staff member.

By 2010, that passion had led to the creation of TUIVirtual and JetVA. TUIVirtual followed the real-world airline transition from Thomson into TUI, reflecting the changes taking place in UK leisure aviation at the time.

JetVA has its own story. EasyJet was expanding rapidly across the UK and Europe, and there was clear interest in building a virtual airline around that style of short-haul European operation. The original concept evolved over time, and after brand and copyright considerations, the site moved away from its earlier naming and became what is now known as JetVA.

That was the right decision. Real-world airline brands are protected, and JetVA has continued as an independent virtual airline for flight simulation use only.

In 2026, the work behind TUIVirtual and JetVA was brought together into the JetVA platform you see today: a combined, modernised and heavily developed virtual airline environment built from many years of experience, maintenance and technical investment.

What JetVA Is Trying To Achieve

JetVA is being built to give flight simulation pilots a proper home, not just another basic virtual airline website. We want pilots to be able to book realistic scheduled flights, prepare them properly, fly them using their preferred simulator setup, track them accurately, submit reliable PIREPs and review their progress over time.

The aim is to support everyone with a genuine passion for flight simulation. JetVA welcomes experienced simulator pilots, real-world aviation professionals, online network pilots, casual flyers and complete newcomers who are just starting their virtual aviation journey.

A good virtual airline should be structured, but not intimidating. It should encourage realism without pushing people away. New pilots should feel excited when they join, ready to explore the schedules, use the systems, fly their first routes and become part of a community of like-minded people.

JetVA is intended to be a place where pilots can settle, progress, learn, contribute and enjoy the hobby. It is not just a flight tracker, not just a downloads page and not just a list of routes. It is a long-term virtual airline project built around systems, support, operational realism and community.

Technology Behind JetVA

JetVA is based on a heavily modified phpVMS platform. Over the years, the system has been developed far beyond a standard installation, with custom dashboards, pilot pages, operational tools, statistics, schedules, live tracking integration, PIREP handling, aircraft profiles, forum support, download pages and internal administration tools.

The wider technical work behind the project has included website development, mail servers, forum systems, personal and business websites, CRM-style systems, business analytics, KPI reporting, operational dashboards and streamlined workflow systems. That experience has helped shape the way JetVA is designed and maintained.

For many years, JetVA and TUIVirtual used the BlueSky tracking system developed by Jeff Kobus. BlueSky served both platforms very well and played an important part in keeping the virtual airlines operational for a long period of time.

Today, Jet Track is the current production flight tracking client for JetVA. Jet Track has been developed to support modern simulator operations, including Microsoft Flight Simulator 2020 and Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024. It is designed to connect the pilot's simulator to the JetVA systems with accurate telemetry, live flight tracking, flight evidence, route and flight level capture, local flight recovery and PIREP submission.

Why Flight Tracking Matters

The connection between a pilot's simulator and the virtual airline system is one of the highest-risk parts of any VA operation. It has to be accurate, stable, low on system resources and reliable enough to work every time.

There is nothing more frustrating than completing a flight and then being unable to send the report. That is why Jet Track is being developed with additional safeguards, including local flight saving and recovery features.

If a pilot completes a flight and there is a connection issue, the flight evidence should not simply disappear. The objective is to allow pilots to recover, sync and submit their flight data safely when they are back online.

JetVA's long-term direction is to make flight tracking dependable, transparent and useful. The system should record what happened, preserve the evidence, submit the PIREP cleanly and give pilots meaningful information about their flight.

Modern Flight Simulation Workflows

JetVA is being developed around the way modern flight simulation pilots actually fly. Many pilots now use SimBrief for operational flight planning, Navigraph for charts and procedures, and online networks such as VATSIM and IVAO for realistic air traffic control.

JetVA supports those workflows while remaining accessible to pilots who are still learning. Pilots can use SimBrief alongside booked schedules, prepare realistic routes, fly online when they choose, use Navigraph charts if they have access, and operate modern aircraft add-ons such as Fenix Airbus aircraft within Microsoft Flight Simulator.

Not every pilot is expected to fly online, use every third-party tool or operate at expert level from day one. The aim is to support serious simulation while still giving newer pilots the confidence to join, ask questions, learn and improve.

Schedules And Operations

JetVA is not limited to static, outdated schedules. The platform is moving towards modern multi-airline operations, using live API-driven schedule data where appropriate to help build a more current and realistic flying environment.

The intention is to give pilots access to relevant routes, real-world-style operations and an active flight board that reflects the life of the virtual airline.

Seeing the flight board full of live flights is one of the biggest rewards of maintaining the system, because it shows the platform being used exactly as intended.

Our Community Values

JetVA is built around responsiveness, fairness, stability and support. From my earliest virtual airline staff experience, I learned that pilots value fast replies, clear actions and systems that work properly. That remains central to the way JetVA is being developed.

The community should be welcoming to new pilots and still interesting for experienced ones. It should be friendly without being careless, realistic without being elitist, and technically capable without becoming difficult to use.

The goal is to create a place where pilots can enjoy their aviation passion with others who understand the same interest. Whether someone is flying their first virtual airline sector or has years of simulator experience, JetVA should give them a stable platform, useful systems and a reason to keep coming back.

A Personal Message from Mark

I have spent more than 16 years maintaining these systems, running servers, developing pages, supporting pilots and keeping the virtual airline operation alive. There have been many changes in flight simulation over that time, but the reason for doing it has remained the same.

My greatest reward is seeing pilots using the systems: aircraft live on the flight board, schedules being flown, PIREPs being submitted, and the community continuing to take part. That brings immense satisfaction because it shows the work has a purpose.

JetVA exists because virtual aviation still matters. It gives people a place to fly, learn, progress, connect and be part of something bigger than a single flight. That is what I have tried to build, and that is what I intend to keep improving.

Common Questions About JetVA

Explore JetVA Virtual Airline Operations

JetVA gives pilots a single virtual airline platform for several UK and European flying styles. Choose the virtual airline operation that matches the routes, aircraft and simulator experience you want — one pilot account, endless possibilities.