Is there such a thing as born pilots?

[SkYfEvEr]

Is there such a thing as a born pilot?
Are some guys born to soar the skies, destine to fly....an make an art of it.........

After all fying the big jets these days is referred to flight management and entail ensuring the auto-gizmos are in check to name a few...

I have aspired to fly professionally for 20years of my life and am 26.....Will I fly an aircraft as a talented aviator or will I acquire skill,? Is the main question I ask myself.....

Any aviators to give insight, are deeply thanked
I am very passionate about the airand wish I had a mentor(aviator) to chat with about all things aeronautical...

Cheers in advance
Skyfever:)

[redsnail]

Even birds need to learn how to fly so no human is born with an inate ability. Some will have a great feel for it but they would have been good at any skill requiring hand/eye/balance abilities.

Only persistance will get you through the slog that is learning to fly, study and persist with the industry. Sure you'll need ability and you'll aquire lots of skills but if you aren't focussed and you don't persist you won't succeed.

Flying is great, the industry isn't.

[AIRWAY]

Learning is the key for everything.

[Icerman]

Once an experienced flight instructor told me that the most important pilot’s ability is the attitude. It doesn't matter if you can bring your plane to land in a bad weather but if you don't end up flying in bad weather, that is what counts.

Based on my experience although you are not born with the attitude you must have it before you start your pilot training. Your FI can't make a change in a couple of months.

[Genghis the Engineer]

Many years ago as Cadet Pilot Engineer, I had my first flying lesson in a Bulldog T1. My instructor was Flt.Lt. D*** T****, known to all his students as "DT" because of the effect he had on us. He'd been in the RAF for 40 years, flying for all of that, hated students, but had flown everything and was accepted by all of us as an incredibly experienced instructor.

At the end of the lesson, he gave me a stern look "Genghis, you've had your first flying lesson. I've seen enough to know that you are not a natural pilot. However, I've only ever seen two natural pilots, and they are both dead. Read up on the next exercise, I expect you in my office at 0830 in the morning for briefing".

Which probably covers it fairly well I thought.

G

[Ex Oggie]

Absolutely there is ............ anyone whose daddy has £££££ :(

"I'm not bitter, just unemployed again"

[hifive11]

SkyfEvEr

When I did my PPL I was told I was born a natural pilot (this was even after I had paid for the course)! and with the ego of any human I began to believe it.

I now am the proud holder of an (F)ATPL and about to start my first flying job and I am over the moon.

However, there is one lesson I learnt between the start of my career to the current time and that is that I am no way a natural pilot. I definitely wasn't born one and have had to work, and will continue to, have to work to improve on my flying skills and abilities and therein lies my hopefully, extremely interesting flying future.

One day I would love to fly for the British Antarctic Survey probably along with many others, but for sure, there will be a deal of challenges ahead if I manage to go down that course.

Most of all, I love the act of flying and that surely is all that is important to any aviator, either born with a natural gift or someone who has to strive to achieve his goal.

:ok: :ok: :ok:

hi5

[scroggs]

The phrase 'born pilot' is generally used to refer to someone with exceptional innate talent for stick and rudder skills. As an airline pilot, such skills are nice to have but far from essential to the job, particularly if you are an Airbus pilot - as I am.

The ultimate finesse in manually flying an aircraft is rather irrelevant in the mainly management tasks you perform as an airline pilot. Even as a 'geriatric jet' pilot in one of the airlines so equipped, your opportunity to display virtuoso skills as a poler are severely limited, unless you wish to completely put off your airline's customers.

Unless you have ambitions as a military fighter pilot, or as a display pilot, don't get too worked up about being assessed as a 'natural pilot'; concentrate instead on being a competent, professional operator.

Scroggs

[Ex Oggie]

hifive11

If you would like to fly with the British Antarctic Survey, as a first step try and get a job with FIGAS down south. Great bunch and some interesting flying, to say the least.

ExO

[hifive11]

Ex Oggie

Thanks for the information - I will certainly look into it for the future. I am sure it must be so interesting with probably more than one heart stopping moment!

hi5 :ok:

[Milt]

Natural Pilots

For stick and rudder skills one needs to have above average muscular co-ordination together with a high sensitivity to small accelerations. Throw in good depth perception and you are a natural. Sensitivity to small accelerations usually leads to air sickness if you are not doing the flying yourself.

During WW2 selections for aircrew often included tests for giddiness in the MISTAKEN belief that pilots should not get giddy.

Never be ashamed of air sickness when not flying yourself as that sickness is a positive for sensitivity to those small accelerations which are so useful in enabling you to fly smoothly and as one with your aircraft.

[SkYfEvEr]

As always a wonderful bunch you guys AND gals are.
I really do admire and respect all opinions and I do seem to agree.....No one is a born natural pilot, and my deductions are made from the majorities opinions... Well them this means I just gotta hit the books harder, study well and focus more and stop making excuses not to pursue my dreams.

Again,THANK YOU GUYS......

You never let me down.......

Sincerely Skyfever:ok:

[PPRuNeUser0172]

Learning to fly isnt too dissimilar to learning to drive so it isnt fundamentally difficult. However, there is a difference between your average driver and a formula 1 driver, so I think there are definitely people out there who are more 'natural' than others.

I dont have any experience with the civvy world where, in comparison to military flying, there is less emphasis on basic stick and rudder skills as opposed to being an efficient operator.

I have seen a big difference in the standard of pilots throughout my RAF training and there are definitely those who are more gifted than others, and quite often this is borne out of confidence.