BA 1-11 Sim Check at Cranebank
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BA 1-11 Sim Check at Cranebank
Hi Guys,
I have a sim check coming up soon in "old faithfull" at Cranebank. I have read a few posts here and on British Pilots on what to expect but these descriptions seem a bit dated and not in line with what is described in the literature I got from BA.
Has anyone completed the Sim check recently (or know from someone else) and can describe the content of the check in brief and also the success rate expected. I heard it was around 80%...?
Thanks all. Will be most appreciated
Looks like I could be one of the last before they rip the poor thing out...
I have a sim check coming up soon in "old faithfull" at Cranebank. I have read a few posts here and on British Pilots on what to expect but these descriptions seem a bit dated and not in line with what is described in the literature I got from BA.
Has anyone completed the Sim check recently (or know from someone else) and can describe the content of the check in brief and also the success rate expected. I heard it was around 80%...?
Thanks all. Will be most appreciated
Looks like I could be one of the last before they rip the poor thing out...
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Well I did the sim check about 14 months ago on the 1-11. The day went something along the lines of:
Report to the 'welcome centre' where you would meet your fellow person being checked, easily recognisable as the only very nervous looking person sitting on their own at reception!! Then the pilot pitched up who was conducting our simulator check to take us over to the simulator building for the briefing. The checker can be a captain or first officer from any of the BA fleets.
Briefing consisted of a quick rundown of the sim check. Each of us were told to expect one sector as handling pilot and one as non handling pilot. Each sector would consist of 1 - 1.5 hours of flying which included a 10 minute 'get the feel' of the simulator at the beginning which was non assessed. The instructor then gave us a brief look at the layout of the flightdeck on the wall and explained the main points like how to transmit and the location and workings of the radios/navaids and autopilot. We were then given all the plates, wx and flightplans and given 10 -15 minutes to brief the first sector which for us was Heathrow to Stanstead consisting of a SID leading straight into a STAR. The second sector was Stanstead to Manchester.
Into the sim then and the other guy went first. He did the practice 10 minutes first which involved a normal takeoff, sim then repositioned onto final and a manual ILS flown to landing. The the official check started. We took off on this very short sector and from the moment the wheels went up the pressure was on with maginal wx reports coming through, loads of RT, an unexpected hold before an NDB approach into STN. We got it on the ground although it was not very pretty. No break and straight into my sector as handling pilot. Same practice session as above then into the flight. Normal takeoff, SID and into the cruise, around 10 minutes into the cruise the instructor (acting as cabin crew) stuck his head between the seats to tell us that the galley was on fire. Organised a diversion into Birmingham and worked flatout to get it on the ground in one piece. Once again not pretty but we got it there. And that was it, we had to debrief each other but recieved no feedback from the instructor.
Main points to note: The flying skills were secondary to the CRM skills, both of the scenarios were put together purely to see if we could work as a team. It would not be possible to fly it on your own, so make use of the other guy, get him to tune the anchient radios for you and discuss your thoughts with him but don't be afraid to just make the decision if required (like a fire). You will not get technical faults as they know you are not familiar with the workings of the aircraft, everyone I have spoken to has had one the following DIVERSIONS due to wx, fire on board, or destination closing. SHORT SECTOR to evaluate how the team works under pressure. PROCEDURAL pressure such as unexpected holding or downgrades to non precision approaches.
Each instructor is different and can put together his/her own scenario so expect the unexpected. If you stuff up the flying don't stress just correct the mistake. MAKE USE OF THE OTHER PILOT, LISTEN TO WHAT HE HAS TO SAY but make your own decisions. Only use the autopilot in straight and level, it just complicates things in other phases, I have seen C152's with better autopilot systems. WORK AS A TEAM AND HELP EACH OTHER THROUGH. Try to relax as the instructor wants to pass you through the check.
Report to the 'welcome centre' where you would meet your fellow person being checked, easily recognisable as the only very nervous looking person sitting on their own at reception!! Then the pilot pitched up who was conducting our simulator check to take us over to the simulator building for the briefing. The checker can be a captain or first officer from any of the BA fleets.
Briefing consisted of a quick rundown of the sim check. Each of us were told to expect one sector as handling pilot and one as non handling pilot. Each sector would consist of 1 - 1.5 hours of flying which included a 10 minute 'get the feel' of the simulator at the beginning which was non assessed. The instructor then gave us a brief look at the layout of the flightdeck on the wall and explained the main points like how to transmit and the location and workings of the radios/navaids and autopilot. We were then given all the plates, wx and flightplans and given 10 -15 minutes to brief the first sector which for us was Heathrow to Stanstead consisting of a SID leading straight into a STAR. The second sector was Stanstead to Manchester.
Into the sim then and the other guy went first. He did the practice 10 minutes first which involved a normal takeoff, sim then repositioned onto final and a manual ILS flown to landing. The the official check started. We took off on this very short sector and from the moment the wheels went up the pressure was on with maginal wx reports coming through, loads of RT, an unexpected hold before an NDB approach into STN. We got it on the ground although it was not very pretty. No break and straight into my sector as handling pilot. Same practice session as above then into the flight. Normal takeoff, SID and into the cruise, around 10 minutes into the cruise the instructor (acting as cabin crew) stuck his head between the seats to tell us that the galley was on fire. Organised a diversion into Birmingham and worked flatout to get it on the ground in one piece. Once again not pretty but we got it there. And that was it, we had to debrief each other but recieved no feedback from the instructor.
Main points to note: The flying skills were secondary to the CRM skills, both of the scenarios were put together purely to see if we could work as a team. It would not be possible to fly it on your own, so make use of the other guy, get him to tune the anchient radios for you and discuss your thoughts with him but don't be afraid to just make the decision if required (like a fire). You will not get technical faults as they know you are not familiar with the workings of the aircraft, everyone I have spoken to has had one the following DIVERSIONS due to wx, fire on board, or destination closing. SHORT SECTOR to evaluate how the team works under pressure. PROCEDURAL pressure such as unexpected holding or downgrades to non precision approaches.
Each instructor is different and can put together his/her own scenario so expect the unexpected. If you stuff up the flying don't stress just correct the mistake. MAKE USE OF THE OTHER PILOT, LISTEN TO WHAT HE HAS TO SAY but make your own decisions. Only use the autopilot in straight and level, it just complicates things in other phases, I have seen C152's with better autopilot systems. WORK AS A TEAM AND HELP EACH OTHER THROUGH. Try to relax as the instructor wants to pass you through the check.
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Thanks for the response and a useful insight but I heard the format has changed a little recently. For example you don't fly with your buddy but with the assesor in the seat next to you. Also the flight follows a standard profile and no longer includes "unexpected" events such as the ones specified..
Has anyone else had more recent experience of the check along the lines of the above...
Thanks
Has anyone else had more recent experience of the check along the lines of the above...
Thanks
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Perhaps I should have said I am a low hours SSP entry. So perhaps that is why there is a difference. The above made me sweat a little 
I think the low hours assesment is a little more straightforward I hope....??
I think the low hours assesment is a little more straightforward I hope....??
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Yes buddieboy Im sure you'll be glad to hear the ssp ride is a little different......
You get some practice beforehand....take-off, some general handling and then a manual ILS....
The instructor then sits in the seat beside you..you get to chose which seat you want to use. He will tune navaids/set-powers (you have to tell him exactly what percentage you want however)...So he's not there to really help you, just to make it fair.
The profiles is as follows:
Take-off - SID - STAR - HOLD - Procedural ILS to land. + some GH en-route.
No emergencies but plenty of questions throughout to check your capacity..I got asked for ETA's for seemingly every point in space! I also got a load of random sums thrown at me like whats 56-17 etc....But it depends on the instructor what types of questions you get.
I feel one of the most important aspects of the check is situational awareness. If you get asked where you are, you better know! Plus make sure you always know were the wind is, don't go holding drift on the wrong side...
Be aware that in a jet max drift isnt simply half....
They have a load of different airports they use, so no point going into that.
One thing that does seem common is the first thing they will tell you is to disregard what you've read on pprune!
Good Luck
You get some practice beforehand....take-off, some general handling and then a manual ILS....
The instructor then sits in the seat beside you..you get to chose which seat you want to use. He will tune navaids/set-powers (you have to tell him exactly what percentage you want however)...So he's not there to really help you, just to make it fair.
The profiles is as follows:
Take-off - SID - STAR - HOLD - Procedural ILS to land. + some GH en-route.
No emergencies but plenty of questions throughout to check your capacity..I got asked for ETA's for seemingly every point in space! I also got a load of random sums thrown at me like whats 56-17 etc....But it depends on the instructor what types of questions you get.
I feel one of the most important aspects of the check is situational awareness. If you get asked where you are, you better know! Plus make sure you always know were the wind is, don't go holding drift on the wrong side...
Be aware that in a jet max drift isnt simply half....
They have a load of different airports they use, so no point going into that.
One thing that does seem common is the first thing they will tell you is to disregard what you've read on pprune!
Good Luck
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Thanks for that Mooney12. Seems a little more straightforward but still a little nerve shredding by the sounds of it...
Don't suppose there is a nice Garmin430 in there to assist with the ETA's
Assume it all done with DME etc?
Also can you just say to the assesor at the start that you would like him to tune all the navaids automatically as you progress on route and you ask him to switch over as you require them (as you are assuming he has tuned the next freq) or do you have to tell him every frequency you want set?
Thanks again
Buddieboy
p.s. don't worry, I will of course disregard any info you provide
Don't suppose there is a nice Garmin430 in there to assist with the ETA's
Assume it all done with DME etc?
Also can you just say to the assesor at the start that you would like him to tune all the navaids automatically as you progress on route and you ask him to switch over as you require them (as you are assuming he has tuned the next freq) or do you have to tell him every frequency you want set?
Thanks again
Buddieboy
p.s. don't worry, I will of course disregard any info you provide
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Yes, all done with DME's....Your assessor may not ask you too many ETA's, he may go down the line's of fuel endurance, who knows...
Unfortunately the assessor won't tune anything automatically!!....just view him as an extra pair of hands...You'll have to tell him what you want tuned and when...They want to see you can manage a flight by yourself.
Good luck
Unfortunately the assessor won't tune anything automatically!!....just view him as an extra pair of hands...You'll have to tell him what you want tuned and when...They want to see you can manage a flight by yourself.
Good luck
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Hi
Just to add my bit……….
I did the BAC 1-11 SSP sim check about 2 weeks ago. My assessor was a really nice guy. He took me (and the other guy doing it that afternoon) to have a coffee, bit of a chat and he put us at ease. He said he was a 757 training captain but would do 1 or 2 days a week doing the 1-11 sim check, so you might have him on your test. I don’t know what any of the other guys are like.
He then took me to a classroom and gave me a ATIS, a departure plate and a ILS plate and ‘15 mins’ to plan. (but in reality he gave me much longer). To work out the 5000’ wind, I veered the ATIS wind by 30 degrees and doubled it, and that seemed to work out ok with my headings in the hold etc.
My ride was pretty much as detailed above except that I was asked no questions while flying. I know 3 other guys that have done the SSP recently and none of us were asked any questions (although I’d still go there expecting some!). My flight went ok except the assessed ILS which was not stable and was close to being out of limits. At about 400’ above decision alt I decided to go around and then he vectored me round for another go which went much better, and I passed, so I guess if things don’t go how you’d like it’s probably not as bad as you think.
When we finished the flight he asked me why I’d chosen to go around and that was the end. I got told a week later by phone the result. Normally if you get a call, you’re in. And an e-mail means you’re out.
The last thing, on my briefing it gave the attitude for the ILS as zero, but me and my mate seemed to think it was more like -2 degrees to maintain the glidepath
Just to add my bit……….
I did the BAC 1-11 SSP sim check about 2 weeks ago. My assessor was a really nice guy. He took me (and the other guy doing it that afternoon) to have a coffee, bit of a chat and he put us at ease. He said he was a 757 training captain but would do 1 or 2 days a week doing the 1-11 sim check, so you might have him on your test. I don’t know what any of the other guys are like.
He then took me to a classroom and gave me a ATIS, a departure plate and a ILS plate and ‘15 mins’ to plan. (but in reality he gave me much longer). To work out the 5000’ wind, I veered the ATIS wind by 30 degrees and doubled it, and that seemed to work out ok with my headings in the hold etc.
My ride was pretty much as detailed above except that I was asked no questions while flying. I know 3 other guys that have done the SSP recently and none of us were asked any questions (although I’d still go there expecting some!). My flight went ok except the assessed ILS which was not stable and was close to being out of limits. At about 400’ above decision alt I decided to go around and then he vectored me round for another go which went much better, and I passed, so I guess if things don’t go how you’d like it’s probably not as bad as you think.
When we finished the flight he asked me why I’d chosen to go around and that was the end. I got told a week later by phone the result. Normally if you get a call, you’re in. And an e-mail means you’re out.
The last thing, on my briefing it gave the attitude for the ILS as zero, but me and my mate seemed to think it was more like -2 degrees to maintain the glidepath
Last edited by adm100; 30th Jun 2006 at 23:29.
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Good luck buddieboy, I'm sure they are not trying to catch you out, but get a general feel of where your flying is at and whether you show the aptitude to improve.
Its just another plane, ok bigger than a sceneca etc, but still, just another plane.
You'll be fine
Its just another plane, ok bigger than a sceneca etc, but still, just another plane.
You'll be fine
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Got a negative on the sim- both of us! We worked flatout and helped each other- I will ask for the feedback...anybody else fail the sim and tried again? How useful was the feedback?
