Position Management

Positions are the core of Landline's structure. Each position represents a controller seat that can log in, make calls, and receive calls. This guide covers creating positions, configuring VATSIM matching, and setting up consolidation trees.

Creating a Position

  1. In the FE panel, select Positions
  2. Click Add Position
  3. Fill in the position details (see below)
  4. Click Save

Position Fields

Field Description Example
Callsign Unique identifier displayed in the grid 1A
Display Name Friendly name shown on hover/call panel PHX Arrival North
VATSIM Prefix Pattern for VATSIM position matching P50_APP
Page Which page this position appears on Enroute
Grid Order Position in the grid (left-to-right, top-to-bottom) 1

VATSIM Position Matching

The VATSIM Prefix field determines which VATSIM callsigns can log into this Landline position.

How Matching Works

When a controller connects to VATSIM with a callsign like ABQ_16_CTR, Landline checks:

  1. Does the callsign start with any configured prefix?
  2. If multiple matches, the most specific match wins

Matching Examples

VATSIM Callsign Position Prefix Match?
ABQ_16_CTR ABQ_16 Yes
ABQ_1_CTR ABQ_16 No (ABQ_1 ≠ ABQ_16)
ABQ_CTR ABQ_ Yes (catch-all)
PHX_TWR PHX Yes
Specificity Matters
If you have both ABQ_ and ABQ_16 prefixes, a controller on ABQ_16_CTR will match the ABQ_16 position (more specific).

Consolidation Trees

Consolidation routing automatically forwards calls when a position is not staffed. This mirrors real-world sector consolidation.

Setting Up Consolidation

  1. Edit a position
  2. Set the Parent Position field
  3. Save the position

Example Consolidation Tree

ZAB_CTR (Parent - Combined Position)
├── 1A (PHX Arrival North)
├── 1B (PHX Satellite North)
├── 1K (PHX NW NAA)
└── 1C (PHX Arrival South)

In this example:

ZAB_CTR
Parent (Online)
1A
Offline
1B
Online
1K
Offline
Calls to 1A and 1K route to ZAB_CTR

Multi-Level Consolidation

Consolidation can be nested up to 3 levels:

ZAB_HIGH (Level 1 - Area)
└── ZAB_EAST (Level 2 - Sub-area)
    └── 1A (Level 3 - Sector)
Keep Trees Shallow
Deep consolidation trees (more than 2-3 levels) can be confusing for controllers. Try to mirror your real-world consolidation practices.

Position Types

Optionally categorize positions by type for better organization:

Bulk Operations

For facilities with many positions:

Import from CSV

  1. Prepare a CSV file with columns: Callsign, DisplayName, VATSIMPrefix, Page
  2. In the FE panel, click Import
  3. Upload your CSV file
  4. Review the preview and confirm

Export Configuration

  1. Click Export in the Positions tab
  2. Save the JSON file as a backup
  3. Can be imported later to restore configuration

Best Practices

Naming Conventions

Grid Organization

Next Steps