View Full Version : Do pilots worry ------
Flapping_Madly
12th May 2007, 22:48
-------about maintenance.
I sometimes worry about whether the mechanics who mess about with my car really know what they are doing. I can just coast in to the hard shoulder in the case of a problem . Pilots can't. It would give me the willies frankly. How do pilots handle it ?
redsnail
12th May 2007, 22:54
I trust our engineers. If I can, I like to chat to the engineers who worked on the aeroplane and get a feel for what was wrong and what had to be done to rectify it.
Back in the GA days if I didn't trust them* (and that was very very rare) I'd offer to take them up with me on the test flight. If they refused, I'd refuse the aircraft and tell them to fix it.
*not company engineers.
TightSlot
13th May 2007, 07:38
It's also worth pointing out that the important systems and things on a large aircraft are often duplicated or triplicated - the idea being that failure of one thing should not be catastrophic for the rest.
cavortingcheetah
13th May 2007, 09:41
:hmm:
Which is why polygamy is such an excellent system for the countering of predictable and catastrophic redundancy.:ooh:
TightSlot
13th May 2007, 10:24
Catastrophe being the only Predictable result of Polygamy?
:uhoh:
It's too early for this many syllables and I have to go flying shortly
Hello Flapping Madly.
Redsnail summed it up well, especially with regards to GA.
I find that, in most cases, pilots and technicians build up a good relationship which is mutually benificial.
Have you any particular country in mind or are you specifically asking about UK based aircraft?
Piltdown Man
13th May 2007, 19:34
Personally, I don't. The guy (or girl) who signs off the fix/repair/replacement is qualified to do so. It really is as simple as that. The car analogy doesn't apply as firstly our techicians have better training, secondly they are more closely monitored (by the user (Me and my crew), the customer (the airline) and the regulator (like the CAA)) and lastly and most importantly, the people who I have come in contact with have a genuine sense of pride in the job they do. I'm sure that there are exceptions but I'm a satified user.
PM
Don't forget, if it all goes wrong, lots of people will be beating their way to all of the engineers who have signed the Tech. Log (Maintenance record).