In the holiday charter world we get lots of
requests for flight-deck visits. Our cabin
staff tend to act as a filtering system before asking whether we are prepared to allow a quick visit to our 'office'.
I have been more than happy to pass the time
of day with ATCO's, WW2 aircrew, nervous
pax, well-behaved children and a host of
others. I have also had to endure kids with
all manner of coughs, olds and smells - semi-
literate louts who usually come up with the
comment 'is this all you have to do then' or
'do you just go there and back' etc. Then we
have the spotters who are fascinated by the
IFF setting or the colour scheme of the F/O's
underpants.
So you see, it takes all sorts. I don't want
a succession of visitors at three in the
morning northbound from Paphos or Tenerife.
I am happy however to meet interested, polite
and decent people of all ages when its a nice
day and all is well.
It is at the end of the day the Captains
discretion whether or not to allow visitors
into his working environment. When not so
inclined a reply of 'sorry - its a training
sector' normally does the trick.