HOW TO USE AVIATOR
We’re excited to announce that we’ve been given approval by the FAA and ICAO (International Civil Aviation Organization) to use the AVIATOR call sign everywhere, every time effective February 1, 2021. Essentially, it no longer matters whether you’re VFR or IFR, flying here in Scottsdale or in New York, at a towered or non-towered airport, it’s AVIATOR all day every day. The N-number will still appear on the aircraft and registration, but it will no longer serve any ATC function.
As a renter, not much will change for you. You’ll still use the AVIATOR call sign appropriate to the aircraft you’re in any time you interact with ATC. Each aircraft has a placard on the instrument panel displaying its AVIATOR call sign. The existing AVIATOR numbers on each aircraft will not change for now. You can use it everywhere, with any ATC tower, approach controller, or center controller. The biggest change for you will be how to file VFR and IFR flight plans. If you use ForeFlight, most of you will likely use Method 1 below for filing.
Method 1 – If you don’t have a profile for each aircraft saved in ForeFlight:

Method 2 – If you have already have a profile for each N-Number saved in ForeFlight:



If you file another way (through Flight Service or 1800WXbrief.com), the flight plan form should look like this:

If you have any questions about the new call sign procedures or how to file flight plans, please reach out to me or your Flight Instructor.