Uniforms, why?

[king rooney]

Just a quick one, what do others think of the idea of wearing uniforms whilst doing their flight training?Im thinking of CCAT and OAT in particular.

Why is it prescribed?
What does it achieve?

Have mysef chosen a training org that does not require uniforms, (not for that reason of course, to base ones choice of trainer on the strength of not wearing a uniform would be rather shallow) so it doesn't affect me at all, but am just curious.

I know that I will have to wear one when I eventually work for an airline, however you show me a law school or an accountacy school that makes its students wear a pin-stripe suit, even though thats what they will need to wear when they end up getting jobs.

Is there anyone with anything to say on this most pressing of issues?

[the_aviator]

The reason behind the uniforms, in my opinion, is that from day one at the Flight Schools that you describe, you are treated as a proffessional pilot. This means that these organisations are run in such a fashion that makes the transition from Flight School to an Airline at the end of the course as simple as possible. The uniforms are part and parcel of this :ok:

I am looking forward to getting my uniform at Cabair.... I can impress the ladies! :}

[woof]

I disagree that wearing a uniform ensures an individual is treated as a professional pilot. An individual is treated as a professional pilot if the instructors are professional and not power tripping.

I can see that a uniform assists in unit cohesion and a sense of team, which are all positive when trying to clear the big hurdles that an individual faces during their training. That said, only very large schools should adopt that attitude, because again, it is down to the instructors to foster the correct training environment.

Sadly the whole argument is tainted by training organisations emblazoning their uniforms with company motto's and therefore forcing an individual to buy from them or selected outlets - often at inflated prices. Which as we know, every penny counts.

Of course it does stop the "what shall I wear today" issue for some :E

[Craggenmore]

Apart from airline recruitment departments, the rest of the industry is highly regimented, structured and requires a very smart appearance. Its very much a question of, "look the part, act the part" which the bigger schools go for, especially considering the "ties" some of them have with certain carriers.........

[Permafrost_ATPL]

It is possible that wearing uniforms is a good idea if you're going to have hundreds of 18 year olds running around the place. If all you had is slightly older and wiser modular guys, there probably would be no issue with behaving professionally at the school. The stripes on the uniforms also help reinforce the authorities of instructors (they have a lot more stripes than you do). In theory it should not be needed, but given the level of immaturity I witnessed from some people at my school, it's probably a good idea...
I can think of a couple of less legitimate reasons though:
a) Airlines representatives visiting the school, to try and convince them that the place if full of pilots who will pass their selection and training when they call them
b) Mummies and daddies visiting the school, to make them believe that the 70k they are about to spend at least guarantess their little baby will no doubt get to fly a 737.
He-he
P
PS
Apart from airline recruitment departments
Good one Craggenmore :)

[CAT3C AUTOLAND]

The Aviator,

I am looking forward to getting my uniform at Cabair.... I can impress the ladies!

I think you may be dissapointed mate, most women I know don't really care for pilot uniforms, the fireman seem to do it for them :D.

[king rooney]

Of course it does stop the "what shall I wear today" issue for some :E

I'll bet some of the uniforms out there stink to high heaven!
Stick 'em in the washing machine you filthy sods!

[king rooney]

I am looking forward to getting my uniform at Cabair.... I can impress the ladies! :}

Not if your ur uniform smells like a cess pit!

[link4]

The point of having a uniform in my opinion is that you need a professional attitude when working towards a professional licence. For those of you who have trouble grasping the concept of 18yr old running around the hallways have got a lot to learn about taking that first all important step of stepping out of the stereotypical image.

However...one thing i do not understand....after peeking throught the OAT directory, the uniform (from what i can see) has one stripe, does that not mean that you should theoretically be holding a PPL to have that honour (which i do :D )
I heard about pin-stripe suit, do OAT actually provide a Pilot Blazer as well? :confused:
This should as interesting as I should be starting with OAT on the APP soon, case in point a uniform is there for a reason, to be put in place to help ensure a professional attitude, besides if we are talking about not having uniforms, then what the point of having one as an AP?........for our Pride :} Thats wht roughly £70K gets you :ok:

[FlyingForFun]

Hmm....

I have done a number of flying courses at a number of different schools - PPL, IMC, Night, CPL, FIC, Multi-engine, IR, MCC, and a couple of others. Only one of these schools made me wear a uniform. My attitude towards all the other courses that I've done was no less professional than it was on the course where I had to wear a uniform; on the contrary, I have tried my best to have a professional attitude towards all of my flying, including my flying training - and that includes the time before I decided to become a "Wannabe" when I thought that flying was only ever going to be a hobby for me.

Now I'm an instructor at a school where students do not wear uniforms. The vast majority of my students have a good, professional attitude towards flying, despite the fact that most of them have no intention of being professional pilots. The small minority who do not have a professional attitude do not get maximum benefit from their flying - they arrive for their lesson 15 minutes late, then have a cup of tea before they'll be briefed. They won't come in when the weather's bad even if there are exams to study for or long briefings to be given. And then when, after many more hours than necessary because they don't think about flying when they are away from the aircraft, they are finally ready to go solo, they find that they can not, because they have not done the Air Law exam, despite the fact that we have been telling them to do it for, in some cases, the best part of a year.

Would wearing a shirt really make any difference to these people??? Or is it purely for the benefit of the school, in an attempt to improve its appearance to visitors?

FFF
----------------

[Permafrost_ATPL]

The point of having a uniform in my opinion is that you need a professional attitude when working towards a professional licence
So lawyers, doctors, engineers, etc. who wear t-shirts at college fail to become professionals?

However...one thing i do not understand....after peeking throught the OAT directory, the uniform (from what i can see) has one stripe
Ah yes, but it's a grey stripe, which is not a real stripe. Once they pass their PT3 test (CPL), they wear one gold stripe. After the "First Officer Fundamentals", a classroom course, they get to wear two stripes while working on their IR. If you're a Modular student, they only give you one stripe because you don't do First Officer Fundamentals. But I know a couple of modulars who thought, quite correctly, that this was non-sense and bought their own two stripes :-)

P

[notdavegorman]

I seem to remember being told many moons ago by the management of my flightschool, when I asked why they insisted paying customers reached in their already overstretched pockets to buy a faux airline pilot's uniform, that the CAA prefer uniform to worn on full time training courses.

Personally, I think the reason why flightschools are so keen on uniform is more to do with selling the marketing hype, trying to give an airline-like aura to potential customers. By customers I'm talking paying ones here, not airline recruiters.

It's all a load bollox, because as soon as you get to an airline, you'll find out uniform isn't worn for training anyway, classroom or simulator.

A word of warning, you might think you look ever so good with a few strips on your shoulder, but in real airline world, you will be crucified by your follow pilots if you are spotted out outside work posing in your epaulettes, buying milk or filling your car with petrol. You'll instantly become known as a tit. Don't do it!

[Permafrost_ATPL]

A word of warning, you might think you look ever so good with a few strips on your shoulder, but in real airline world, you will be crucified by your follow pilots if you are spotted out outside work posing in your epaulettes, buying milk or filling your with petrol. You'll instantly become known as a tit

I hope that all the OAT guys I have spotted wearing their uniform in Kiddlington's COOP will read this :ok:

P

[Cabingirl]

i think pilots look sexy in their uniform dont moan just wear it! x

[Permafrost_ATPL]

I think cabin girls look better without their uniform, ESPECIALLY when they moan

LOL

P

[Cabingirl]

ha ha i asked for that 1! x

[link4]

so does anyone actually know if OAT's uniform actually consists of a Blazer as well? :confused:

And who said a pilots uniform dont do it for the girls? From past experience i beg to differ :cool:

[Cabingirl]

dont know really just thought i'd say what i was thinking! x

[Blinkz]

I think you all seem to be taking this waay to far lol. Does it matter what you wear to fly? No, does everyone wearing a uniform look smart? yes, both to people inside and outside the school. I don't think it really matters whether you do or don't, but as a student that has to wear one I just accept it and move on.
And as for spotting people wearing there out of school/airline I do agree, however I'm not going to drive 20mins home to change to drive 20mins back to go to the supermarket I passed on the way home :p

[notdavegorman]

Just remember to take the goddam epaulettes off though!

[Craggenmore]

Just remember to take the goddam epaulettes off though!Ah yes, but then you'll look like a Brinks Mat courier driver, railwayman, policeman, chauffer etc..............and so they'll all be saying instead, who's the new Brinks Mat courier driver, railwayman, policeman, chauffer etc....What a tit!

:p

[link4]

I dont see where all this foolishness of taking the stripes off come from, take the pride in your work, im not saying to go out in a night club or to a restaurant in it, but why take the stripes uniform off (and risk losing one them, which has happened to me before, and i can sure as hell tell you that you will look more of a tit if you turn up 2 work the next day with it on in just 1 shoulder) just so other people wont see....:hmm:

[Piltdown Man]

So you take both off, tit. And if you turned up for work with none, who would notice?

[notdavegorman]

Guys, some of you aren't getting this.

At work, epaulettes on. As soon as you're away from work, epaulettes live with your airside ID in the inside pocket of your uniform jacket or similar. That's the way things work, trust me.

For the record, everyone assumes you're a security guard, unless that natural air of authority you exude confuses them.

As for loosing one on the way to work, that's why you're given a second set, at least at any airline with moral fibre. Follow the system detailed in my second para, you won't loose them. It's when you're poncing around Tescos you loose them.

[G-DANM]

Ah yes, but then you'll look like a Brinks Mat courier driver, railwayman, policeman, chauffer etc

Mr Craggenmore can I just say that the majority of train drivers (especially virgin and First Great Western) have much more professional looking (and smarter) uniforms than any you would get from a flight training school. I also think (having seen the uniforms at the FTO's) that it would look far more professional (and certainly more like a real training base for an airline) if they just insisted on wearing a smart work shirt and tie with trousers and smart shoes. That keeps you happy when you go down the supermarket as now people think "there is a businessman". The only people who won't like it are the 18 yr olds who think by putting on a black tie and a pilot shirt from a catalouge they instantly become airline pilots (although many staff from FTO's think this to). I have to say I think a smart cotton shirt and tie would put me in the working mood much more than a cheap pilot shirt with two bits of cloth on the shoulders.

[VFE]

My view is that the majority of schools insist on uniform in order to appeal to the vanity side of the potential easily influenced 'customers' who would jump at the chance to wear their uniform.

When made to wear a uniform I felt a bit of a dick all in all. The deciding factor in the dickometer swing was whether eppaullettes were involved. If they were involved then I'd do a clandestine shuffle out onto the apron with my cardy pulled over my head to avoid detection from other less anally retentive student pilots at other FTO's! Out in the supermarket was a different matter as there was obviously no BE76 in view to spoil the illusion that I might possibly fly B747's of course.... :}

If it was just shirt and tie then that was ok at the supermarket or airport.

VFE.

[imac67]

i think pilots look sexy in their uniform dont moan just wear it! x HI Cabingirl i,ll come over tonight i will show you mine ....

[Cabingirl]

Is that a threat or a promise?!!!!!!