Pre-Departure Clearances in the Vancouver FIR are issued upon request by the pilot or during high volumes of traffic.
PDC service is currently provided only in CYVR and CYYJ. When available, "PDC Available on request" will be listed in the ATIS NOTAMS.
PDCs are issued via private message on all VATSIM pilot clients - pilots may request a PDC via voice or text. The format to a PDC will note similar information to an IFR clearance, as shown in the example below:
PDC - ACA123 1234 CYVR - A320 - FL310 - JANEK SEKAB SEKAB4 - USE SID YVR2 - DEPARTURE RUNWAY 26L - DESTINATION CYLW - CONTACT CYVR_GND 121.700 WITH IDENTIFIER 999A - END OF MESSAGE
If requesting via text please private message the controller with DEPARTURE CLEARANCE REQUEST
Pilots should then call ATC when ready for push and start, noting the identifier assigned to their flight in the PDC.
Vancouver Ground, ACA123, PDC Identifier 999A, ready for push and start.
If there is an issue with the flight plan (i.e. wrong altitude, non-existant waypoints, or out of date SIDs/STARs) the controller will reply with the following message:
PDC UNAVAILABLE, REVERT TO STANDARD VOICE PROCEDURES
If you receive this message, the PDC clearance becomes void and you should contact ATC on the normal frequency.