Right handed Airbus Pilots

[FRED WHELAN]

A few years ago I was fortunate enough to spend an hour in the right hand seat of the A320 Sim at GE Aviation in Crawley doing touch & go's. My question, which I suppose I should have asked at the time is, how do the fortunate right handed pilots that get promoted to the left hand seat get on with the left hand control stick?

[Dream Land]

Actually I feel much more comfortable in the left seat. :}

[usedtofly]

Hi Fred,

As a matter of interest it is usual for most private pilots to fly left handed right from the beginning of their training. Often when people progress to commercial flying they feel quite strange sat in the right side and then flying right handed !

By convention the throttle levers are usually in the centre of the cockpit.

Cheers

UTF

[FRED WHELAN]

Thanks UTF.
If anyone is interested I got this reply back from a mate who is in the R/H seat at Monarch after I emailed him and asked if it was a stupid question!

'Not a stupid question at all, it's one I have asked a few Captains. They say that it's a bit strange to begin with, especially since everything else is swapped around too like the thrust levers, switches etc are all operated using the other hand to what you've become used to over years in the r/h seat. I'm told that by the time you complete the sim sessions for your command training you are used to it'.

Cheers

[saman]

An oft asked question.

Think about an old fashioned flight deck with a great big control wheel on top of a heavy control column. Now think of the higher paid guy or gal in the Left seat. He or she wants to change a radio frequency, set up a change on the autopilot or adjust any control on the central console.
Now which hand is he or she using on the old fashioned control column?

You got it, the southpaw pilot!

So just the same on a nice new flight deck with siestick controllers where the pilots have a table for paperwork, for the in-flight snack if needed, for the lap-top. And with side-stick, for the first time, lady pilots can wear a skirt if they so wish!