We sat together with Antoine Barison, also known as Bouclettes Tour on Twitch and Youtube to talk about his passion for aviation and IVAO.
Tell us more about yourself, Antoine.
"I'm currently 18, soon 19, and 2-3 years ago, I discovered my passion for aviation thanks to IVAO. But my interest in aeronautics began earlier. I've always been fascinated by the space aspect of aeronautics, and since January [2025], I've been part of the French Web department."
How did you discover IVAO?
"I remember it like it was yesterday. It was a Monday, I was sick, and scrolling through TikTok. For the past two or three months, Videos of pilots and controllers on IVAO or other simulation networks have been recommended.
That Monday, I said to myself: "Why not give it a try? So I signed up for the network, and here I am now sitting with Virtual Sky for this Creator Spotlight interview".
When you started out on IVAO, what were your biggest challenges?
"I have a stutter and am shy, an excellent choice for an ATC position, you might say. What's more, I arrived on IVAO without any aeronautical knowledge, so I learned everything here, with documentation and advice from other ATCs/Trainers in the French division, as well as the encouragement I had here.
A few months after joining the network, I was told a phrase that has remained engraved in my memory:
"You're the ATC, you decide: you're the conductor".
So, my greatest challenge was to build up my self-confidence and knowledge. The training department of the French division played an important role in this."
How was IVAO able to help you with these challenges?
"As I said, I used to be an introverted high-school student who stuttered a lot. Today, I wouldn't say extroverted, but I'm much more outgoing. IVAO, along with a few other changes in my life, has enabled me to gain self-confidence and to feel at ease when speaking, in the presence of strangers, or even in the presence of those close to me.
On IVAO, on both sides of the microphone, you have to be clear, know where you're going, and, of course, know how to express yourself. In life, it's the same thing."
"IVAO helped me in the sense that I accepted the idea of speaking in public."
Were you already a content creator when you joined IVAO?
"I tried to be a few years ago, but I didn't have the time."
What changed your mind to restart your content creation career?
"I wanted to offer new content that was as close as possible to what trained controllers say, without any unnecessary elements. Even though I'm far from perfection, and every day I hope to do better than the last."
As a content creator, what difficulties did you face when starting?
"In my opinion, one of the main difficulties when starting to create content is taking the first step without knowing where you're going. I know, it sounds silly, but it's true. After the first few videos or live broadcasts, it becomes routine: I launch Aurora, OBS, connect to the network, launch the stream or upload videos, and off I go!
For example, when I first started out, before I joined the partnership program, I used to broadcast live every one of my tower control sessions. Now that I've joined the program, I try to stick to one video a week, recorded during the previous week, then published on Wednesday evening at 18z."
What are the biggest pitfalls as a content creator?
"It can be quite difficult not to become overconfident and pretend to know everything. As creators, we're very tempted to help our community, but most of us are neither ATCs, nor pilots in real life. So when speaking to viewers, we need to be sure what we're talking about."
"For my part, I'm giving a hint and telling the members of my community to get in touch with IVAO staff if I don't know the answer. I trust that they will give them a more reliable answer."
Do you believe that content creators are important for IVAO?
"Sharing our experience, our mentality, or helping newcomers find answers to their questions. That, to me, is the value of a content creator on IVAO."
You mentioned that when you started out on IVAO with much interest but not so much knowledge, what has helped you the most to gain the knowledge that you have now?
"The French training staff has amazing patience and knowledge. Be ready personally before you take the next position. I started at Cannes Tower, then moved to Nice Delivery, followed by Nice Ground, and then slowly moved up to Nice Departure and Approach. With each step, I waited until I felt ready to move on to the next step."
You have managed to get to the APC rating on this network, but as a pilot, you are still FS3, do you have intentions to also get pilot ratings, and why?
"Yeah! Currently, I'm waiting for my PP, I want to keep learning and challenge myself. "
"I think that continuing to learn is very important on the network and as a content creator. You want to keep your viewers interested."
During your time on the network, what has impressed you the most?
"The atmosphere and community. Of course, we're all human, so we all have some sort of group, whether it's via the VAs, or even according to our airports or airfields of choice that we've discovered throughout our adventures on the network. As far as I'm concerned, whether we get on well or badly, we all have at least one thing in common: we all love aviation."
What are your ambitions in real life for the future?
"In real life, I'm a high school student in France, graduating at the end of the year. I'd like to have a company in IT, but before that, thanks to IVAO, I'd like to try my luck in the civilian sector, as an Air Traffic Controller."
Thank you very much for taking the time to talk with Virtual Sky Antoine, and we would like to wish you all the best with your content creation and hopefully future as an Air Traffic Controller.
If you wish to see Antoine live in action, give him a follow on Twitch or subscribe to his YouTube Channel
If you are part of the IVAO Creator Partnership Programme and wish to be featured in Virtual Sky, contact the Creator Partnership Team.
If you are a content creator who wishes to be part of the IVAO Creator Partnership Programme, visit https://creators.ivao.aero/ for more information.