Maths and being a pilot

[concorde001]

Hello!
This is my first post on here...so here I go!

Just wanted to know, how brilliant does one have to be at Maths and all things scientific to be accepted (particularly for BA) on an airline's trainee scheme?
I'm asking becaus I'm rather confused.
I was talking to a BA pilot couple of years ago and she said she did Maths, Physics and French for her A'Levels and Aerospace Engineering for her degree. I thought I would have no chance, because, I'm average at Maths, and for A' Levels I did English Lit, History and Economics and for my degree did Economic History! However, she thought that was no problem - she told me how her friend was accepted for BA's trainee programme and she had done a degree in Anthropology!
So, where do I stand?
I would love to hear your views on this. Are there any pilots her who never did Maths/Science after GCSE, and are pilots?
Thanks!

[arpansingla]

Hi.

I'm 16 and when i first got interested into becoming a commercial pilot thats what i initially thought - 'you have to be really good at maths and the other techinal subjects i.e physics, chemistry'. however i've learnt that you can become a pilot with just average grades, thats if you pay for your own training.

The only time people harp on about having maths and physics is when it comes to doing the atpl theory work, having those subjects under you belt helps you apparently.

Some people say the most complex maths you'll ever need will be the GCSE stuff!

Ba dont offer sponsorships anymore, so i wouldnt worry about what they want! The closest thing to a sponsorship nowadays is the CTC (where you have to put £60k bond) or the Flybe one (around £30k). I think sponsorships are good but you have to show your really motivated and determined, after all there are so many applicants to choose from. I think when it comes to selecting people on CTC the rate that get selected is around 2-4% i believe :oh: . I think the sponsors do look for you to have good/average grades at school but i dont think they're really bothered in what subjects. They like to see you have an aptitude to learn basically.

However grades arent the only thing that come into selection, by gosh no. There are a whole range of other things. you have to be the right person in terms of personality - would the sponsor want to be sitting in a confined cockpit for 8 hours or so with you?! i believe airlines also look for team skills, initiative, leadership, the ability to learn quickly, motivation, confidence etc, these are all skills required to become a pilot.

To improve these skills i have taken up extra curricular activities sich as the air cadets, and am also starting the duke of edinburgh award.

I'm sure people on pprune will elaborate on what i have said, or add anything i may have missed out, but basically grades aren't eveything in becoming a pilot!

[Zulu Yankee]

Don't worry, I'm sure you won't need to roll out any cost minimisation functions etc! As an economist, maths isn't too much of a concern for meself, but a lot of people I know have a limited understanding of maths and are still flying. Obviously, it helps and you do need basic geometry and numeracy skills, but you don't need to have a Msc in Advanced Calculus.:cool:

[Arrestahook]

Make sure you know your three times table and you won't go far wrong.

[redsnail]

About the only maths I use these days is working out my per diems. :D
Oh, and a fuel figure occassionally :E

[concorde001]

Thanks for your reply guys! I've done some of the tests on SHL, and they weren't that bad...but a polishing on the numeracy tests wouldn't go a miss!

[scroggs]

Here we go again....! ;)

Maths is not required as a qualification by any commercial pilots in UK. That applies at GCSE, never mind A-level. However, a solid understanding of basic mathematics is definitely necessary for the completion of the ATPL groundschool exams.

Some sponsorship schemes in the past (there are effectively none at present) have specified maths and a science at GCSE grade C or above, among a total of 5 such GCSEs and two A-levels. Britannia (I think) is the only airline sponsorship that's ever specified maths at A-level. God knows why they did.

Direct employment by any airline after self-sponsored training will not have any specific educational qualifications as a pre-requisite, but, obviously, if you are a recent school leaver with no employment experience, educational qualifications may be all you have to show you are a better prospect than the next guy - so the better they are, the better your chances may be.

Aeronautical or other engineering degrees are not generally held to be more or less appropriate for prospective pilots than any other degrees.

Scroggs

[flaps to 60]

Concorde

For your exams as long as you can multiply or divide by 3, 5 or 60 then the rest fo it is a piece of piss. Once you get into a job you use a calculator..........simple really.

Good luck