Aviation Insights

Hello, been away for a while working on another project. I’ll share a little about that soon. For now, lets talk about the job of a professional aviator. 

Broken down simply, your job as a professional aviator is to move an airplane from point A to point B safely and efficiently. It starts to get complicated when you add in all the other factors. For example, what kind of plane are you moving, what kind of cargo are you moving, what type of flying are you doing – night, over-water, long haul, short haul etc. We’ll keep it simple here by limiting this discussion to moving an airplane safely.

I’m sure you’ve all read, seen or heard about the airplane that successfully ditched in the Hudson River.  I waited a little while to add my opinion and think it’s appropriate with the discussion of moving an airplane safely. There has been a lot of talk about the pilots being hero’s, the event being a miracle etc., etc. In fact, you’ve probably heard or seen the pilots attempting to not call themselves hero’s. For the record, I think they were hero’s. The pilots and the entire crew. Here’s why. To move an airplane safely can encompass a lot of different actions for a single flight, and, different from flight to flight. I use the expression “a walk in the park” for a day when every thing went right. “Once crisis after another” I use describe a bad day. In either case, the many actions required to move an airplane safely require the crew to constantly make decisions. Because of the 3 dimensional world aviators operate in, and I frequently tell young pilots if they’re not paying attention the third dimension will kill you, those decisions have to made rather quickly in many cases. You’re attention to detail during training will help a great deal with this process. This crew apparently paid attention. Although the airplane didn’t make it back safely, everyone did. 

Here is what they were faced with; they had approximately 3 minutes to – figure out what happened – determine what the options or courses of action were – choose the best one – and execute. As I’m sure you know, the happy ending says it all. Mission accomplished.

Are you prepared to operate your airplane safely every time you fly? Are you prepared to react quickly if needed? Can you make the difficult choice? That is the profession you are in. Constantly training, asking questions, reviewing manuals and paying attention to every flight is necessary to be a good aviator. Remember, that third dimension will kill if you are not paying attention. What an airplane does should never surprise you. (more on that in a later blog). 

When you come up for a raise or new job, remember the third dimension and it’s potential. Stand firm on your commitment to be a professional aviator who can move an airplane safely, but also stand firm on what a professional aviator should be paid. Don’t settle for a wage that may make you think about settling in an airplane. It may make the difference for whether you career stays aloft or afloat.