Captain touring cabin

[BKS Air Transport]

En route from Leeds to the Med the other week, it made a pleasant surprise to see the captain come out of the cockpit and make a tour of the cabin, chatting to passengers.
At one time this was commonplace, almost obligatory, but seemed to die out. Did these stop as a result of increased regulation, or did the captains simply get fed up with doing them?

[Nicholas49]

Can you tell us which airline and, if you know, what aircraft? I'd be very surprised if it was one of the large carriers given that the seatbelt sign now goes on if s/he leaves the FD in flight...

[mutt]

Depending on what part of the Med you were going to, its possible that an augemented crew was used, therefore even if the captain was in the cabin, there could be 2 others in the cockpit, or that captain could be a check airman in the jumpseat and the normal crew were still in the cockpit, or that captain could be jumpseating home and the normal crew were still in the cockpit.....

Lots of reasons why a captain could be in the cabin, so dont panic :):)

Mutt

[screwballburling]

I am not in agreement with this strolling and parading yourself in the cabin. If your are part of a 2 man crew it's a no no IMHO, Barring the call of nature of course but don't loiter. You only need something to go wrong at the wrong time and things could get ugly, very quickly, if not dealt with by the designated operating crew.

If said Captain is part of an augmented crew and playing at this, a pax my well think but not ask "who's flying the aircraft?" or "who is minding the shop?" while you are prancing around.

This "master of my ship mentality" is archaic and should be consigned to the scrap heap.

[compton3bravo]

Typical comment from a Yank, its called public relations love!

[Left Coaster]

PR? Not likely...most operations allow a crewmember out to answer the call and then head right back in...even if it was an augmented crew, it's still the same answer...the "God Walk" went out years ago...stuff your comments about the "Yanks"...that's just childish!

[Avman]

No, in fact it is mainly the Yanks and the Brits. The rest of world´s aircrews still live a regular working life, devoid of paranoia and misplaced righteousness. The Yanks and the Brits have meekly surrendered to ridiculous regulations imposed by morons who don´t have a clue what security means. Long live common sense!

[simonchowder]

If you caught the local bus into town or you got the the train down to London you wouldnt expect the driver to leave his cab and and shoot the **** with the pasengers ,you would expect him to be doing his job at the sharp end ,so why should be it any different on on a aircraft?

[parabellum]

Doesn't it go back to the days when people paid a small fortune to fly and this was a way for the company to show their appreciation? Way before any security considerations. Used to happen on BOAC with two FOs and an FE still on the flight Deck.

[Bullethead]

I'm just wondering whether the same feeling of trepidation would exist if the F/O left the flight deck for an extended time and left the Captain on the flight deck by him/herself?

In the mob I fly for both F/Os and Captains are trained and checked to the same standard and both hold a Command endorsement on the aircraft.

In a multi-crew aircraft sometimes the F/O and a S/O can be left on duty on the flight deck while the Captain is fast asleep in the crew rest, which may or may not be anywhere the flight deck depending on the particular airline and aircraft configuration.

Just because a crew member is an F/O doesn't necessarily mean he's inexperienced or less capable it usually means his chance for command training hasn't eventuated yet.

Personally if I want to go into the cabin for other than just a short break I'll check how my offsider is feeling and discuss any operational aspects that may arise though if the weather is doubtful or you're about to enter a busy ATC environment I'd delay until things settle down.

Regards,
BH.

[Skipness One Echo]

Perhaps the fellow needed to stretch his legs? For the love of God, if one is feeling a little odd, a brief stroll up and down can work wonders. One wouldn't expect the driver of a train to do the same as there is generally not a relief and fully qualified driver in the cab at the same time....

Let the witch hunt begin.

[Avman]

I fly quite a bit across the atlantic with KLM (B777/A330). They generally have three F/D crew members: Captain, Senior F/O and F/O. A seat in Business Class is curtained off as an F/D rest area. At some point during the cruise the Captain will leave the Senior F/O in command whilst he takes a rest. At this point it is not unusual to see the Captain take a little stroll in the cabin and chat to the pax for a while before he goes to his rest area.

[Nicholas49]

On the other hand, in short-haul two-crew operations it is must now be very uncommon to see a crew member wander around 'talking to passengers'. I flew from Bari to Stansted with FR last week; the captain switched on the seatbelt sign mid-flight and all passengers queuing for the toilet had to return to their seats so that he could pay a visit. The message sent out was clear: passengers cannot 'mingle' with the flight crew in flight.

BH, that is all very well for an airline with experienced F/Os who could handle any emergency on their own. In Europe, I think most would agree there are some carriers where it would be best if the captain, in many cases the only experienced pilot on the aircraft, was not fast asleep in his bunk, but rather at the controls, if something serious happened!

[wiggy]

So are (some of you) "happy" with the Captain leaving the Flight Deck at all? How do you reconcile the Captain not being at the controls, and on some aircraft not even being on the Flight deck for 3 hours plus a some of our 12+hour flights on Long Haul.

Even even on a 2 pilot sector I try to venture into all the galleys at least once on a sector - but my timing depends on the things such as weather ( e.g. forecast turbulence ) the route ( e.g. High Ground or complex airspace ATC ) and the experience level of the co-pilot(s).....but I don't hang around, I don't spend hours chatting to the passengers, I regard it as more of a crew management issue. It reminds some of our colleagues that there is someone in the Chain of Command above their Chief Steward, but I digress.

IMHO if done at a sensible time with e.g a 5000 hour P2 in the RHS I don't see the problem.

[Union Jack]

IMHO if done at a sensible time I don't see tit as a major issue

Wiggy is obviously a leg man ....!:ok:

Jack

PS And, equally obviously, amended his original message in the time it took me to reply!

[Avman]

So are (some of you) "happy" with the Captain leaving the Flight Deck at all?

Doesn't bother me. I'm confident that the Captain values his life just as highly as I do mine - in fact, probably more so! If he's confident in his F/O, then so am I.

[ReadyToGo]

I've seen this once, and that was with Easyjet on a trip from NCL-FAO. A passenger in front of me had been visibly nervous, and the Captain came out to have a little chat with her. I was very surprised but thought it was a really nice touch. After that he answered a few other questions from passengers before going back up front.

Probably a nice break for the Captain too.

RTG!

[brutus676]

I also experienced this on a KLM flight Amsterdam - Lima via Bonnaire. Indeed the Captain was serving drinks! Nice touch I thought.

[mutt]

Who is the Captain?

Why do you think that the guy in uniform in the cabin is the OPERATING captain?

Mutt

[Left Coaster]

KLM loves stripes! The whole crew wears (or at least almost all of them) 'em! They all have a different rank depending on the width, colour and type of uniform, and job description. It's not too hard to tell... but the Skipper out serving drinks? Hmmmmm...:ooh:

[ReadyToGo]

In my example, the "captain" in question wore 4 stripes, and in his little chat, he explained that actually he was "acting first officer" as he had been called in to cover sickness, so essentially there were two expereinced captains on the flight deck. (Though that was probably to calm the nervous passenger).

Just struck me as a really nice gesture, to just come and stand for a few minutes, share some banter with the passengers and his crew in the front galley.

RTG!

[simonchowder]

Thats fantastic RTG, a real live captain, with four bars, no less shared banter with his crew and actually spoke to you , you must almost feel as if you have been touched by the hand of god, thats something to tell the grand kids about in the years to come

[Avman]

What a facetious and completely unneccesary post simonchowder. Did you forget to take your medication this morning? :hmm:

[parabellum]

Avman - if you read some of the other 65 posts from simonchowder you will soon get the message!:ok:

[deltayankee]

Indeed the Captain was serving drinks!


I'v heard people saying this before. On KL the pursers have stripes too, but they are slightly narrower. Not everyone with four stripes is the captain!

[smudgethecat]

Wouldnt surprise me if that chowder chappie was a bloody colonial, damn bad attitude ,all started to go downhill when those ANZAC generals in the first lot refused to let us shoot a few for the sake of example if you ask me

[Nicholas49]

RE KLM: so does anyone else in the crew other than the captain wear a uniform with four stripes/bars? Thinner they may be, but what exactly is the point of this? It only makes things confusing, doesn't it? Or am I not thinking 'Dutch'?

[parabellum]

Nicholas49 - If you saw Juud in her uniform, ready for work, I'm sure you would easily spot the difference between her and the captain!;)
(Clue number 1: Pilots in KLM don't wear a powder blue uniform!).

[angels]

Pilots also treat the aforementioned with the respect she deserves....

Anyway, I used to like it when the pilot had a potter. I was on a flight to Oslo many moons ago (a special BA charter for a some of us cityfolk) when the pilot came from the cockpit, handed the lady sitting next to me the end of a piece of string and said to her, "Keep hold of that, you're driving."

10 minutes later he was back in the cockpit with a buxom wench he had found at the rear of the aircraft.

Nice one mate! :ok:

[poina]

Our job is not to act like the capt of the qe2 and hobnob with the rich and famous. Someone up there is supposed to be sucking on O2 at this time, why make it uncomfortable for the other guy. Safety is job 1 whatever the level of experience of the fo, and I've flown with some that were better than me. Sh1t happens!

[tom775257]

I have before gone around and helped the cabin crew out serving up food while I was a relief crew member. I couldn't sleep, got bored, so gave them a hand. Only an FO though.

[aflyer100]

Although a US regulation, the following bit from the US operating rules (also known as CFR 14 Part 91) might be interesting. These cover all flights (airlines and general aviation).

91.105 - Flight crewmembers at stations.

(a) During takeoff and landing, and while en route, each required flight crewmember shall (1) Be at the crewmember station unless the absence is necessary to perform duties in connection with the operation of the aircraft or in connection with physiological needs; and (2) Keep the safety belt fastened while at the crewmember station.
So, alas, other than a quick hello while on the way to the rest room, no socializing is permitted. Just one more example showing that we are no longer in the "golden age" of air travel when such visits were considered part of the Captain's duties.

[Avman]

crewmember station

Can't they even call it the cockpit or flight deck anymore?!!

Next they'll expect you to pi$$ out the [crewmember station] window :}

[BKS Air Transport]

Just to add a little to my original post, there had been a technical issue at the start of the flight, and I think he was probably just wanting to make sure that people understood and were ok about it. A nice touch.

[Rainboe]

Anyway, I used to like it when the pilot had a potter.
I read that first as 'porter', and I have to say I thought 'what a jolly good idea', and how 'they did it right in the old days!'
I do remember flying with an older BOAC Captain in the early 70s who used to wear old carpet slippers and a motheaten cardigan on night flights. Hearing one of our passengers was Mick Jagger himself, he enquired 'who is he? Do I know him?' Now in BOAC, if the Captain decided he would pass an hour or two in the cabin, there was nobody to answer to! And this is actually the case now despite people quoting rules above! If there are two pilots occupying the pilots seats, then really, is it a problem?