What makes a good pilot?
Thread Starter
Join Date: Oct 2003
Location: AUS
Posts: 65
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
What makes a good pilot?
I'm interested in hearing from experienced pilots what they think makes a good pilot?
What qualities do they possess?
What do they do / don't do, that average and crap pilots do and don't do?
What qualities do they possess?
What do they do / don't do, that average and crap pilots do and don't do?
A lot of ops managers and owners would say that a good pilot breaks flight and duty times, flies over loaded, puts up with unserviceability, will work for nothing, use a VFR GPS as a DME etc etc.
Experienced pilots are those who can recognise that what the owner/ops manager wants for their financial gain can cost you your licence and/or life, and refrains from it to live to fly another day.
Self dicpiline, on-going self learning always trying to improve yourself will make you a better pilot. And most of all keep asking questions like you have here, learn from other peoples mistakes, experience.
Experienced pilots are those who can recognise that what the owner/ops manager wants for their financial gain can cost you your licence and/or life, and refrains from it to live to fly another day.
Self dicpiline, on-going self learning always trying to improve yourself will make you a better pilot. And most of all keep asking questions like you have here, learn from other peoples mistakes, experience.
Join Date: Sep 2003
Location: near a lake, need I say more
Posts: 30
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
a good pilot is always thinking
S is for.............
Safety.....safety for yourself, safety for your pax, and safety of your aircraft.
A is for.............
Accuracy, Navigation calculations, fuel calculations are they right???fly by the numbers, aim to be the smoothest pilot using the controls.
E is for...........
Efficiency on joining circuits, warm ups, and checks.
remember that just because you did your checks in two minutes did you do it right???
imagine the savings by being efficient on each flight saving 2 minutes each leg, when a air charter company run 10 - 20 aircraft.
A good pilot is one that shows basic airmanship and respect to other airman.
S is for.............
Safety.....safety for yourself, safety for your pax, and safety of your aircraft.
A is for.............
Accuracy, Navigation calculations, fuel calculations are they right???fly by the numbers, aim to be the smoothest pilot using the controls.
E is for...........
Efficiency on joining circuits, warm ups, and checks.
remember that just because you did your checks in two minutes did you do it right???
imagine the savings by being efficient on each flight saving 2 minutes each leg, when a air charter company run 10 - 20 aircraft.
A good pilot is one that shows basic airmanship and respect to other airman.
Can do attitude
lots of ops managers and owners will expect you to bust some rules and safety standards to get a job a done and this is wrong and not the mark of a good driver.
However I would like to include into that mix a flip side to that argument for consideration.
The practice of good airmanship, thorough systems and aircraft knowledge plus good situational awareness are just some of the qualities you will find in a "good" pilot.
I have always found some great drivers are the ones who don't tell you why the job can't be done, but explain the problem and offer possible solutions that are safe, legal, and suitable to the company and the customer (if indeed their are any). These people use the grey matter to do the job not relying on the ops manager or owner to come up with possibly "rule breaking" solutions.
However I would like to include into that mix a flip side to that argument for consideration.
The practice of good airmanship, thorough systems and aircraft knowledge plus good situational awareness are just some of the qualities you will find in a "good" pilot.
I have always found some great drivers are the ones who don't tell you why the job can't be done, but explain the problem and offer possible solutions that are safe, legal, and suitable to the company and the customer (if indeed their are any). These people use the grey matter to do the job not relying on the ops manager or owner to come up with possibly "rule breaking" solutions.
Join Date: Sep 2003
Location: near a lake, need I say more
Posts: 30
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
opps I forgot to include that one too.......
knowledge is power, and a good understanding of your aircraft systems is going to make you a good pilot.
good summing up Poto.
knowledge is power, and a good understanding of your aircraft systems is going to make you a good pilot.
good summing up Poto.
Guest
Posts: n/a
Be able to Think..
Know the machine.
Know the rules and use them for guidance.
Be a proffesional. (or aim to be)
Efficiency isnt everything, I would place it low in order of priority, it would be difficult to shave 2mins off each sector without sacrificing safety and professionalism.
Know the machine.
Know the rules and use them for guidance.
Be a proffesional. (or aim to be)
Efficiency isnt everything, I would place it low in order of priority, it would be difficult to shave 2mins off each sector without sacrificing safety and professionalism.
Join Date: Sep 2003
Location: near a lake, need I say more
Posts: 30
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
5 left and right,
getting a better ground speed by flying in 10 knots of headwind compared to 20 knots of headwind is more beneficial dont you think?????....
and this is by changing alttudes from 9500 feet to 7500 feet and this was over a 420 nm sector. me thinks that I saved more than 2 mins....
and did safety suffer????
not at all!!!!!!!!
I think it showed my professnalism. efficency is thinking two steps ahead, a bit like a chess game.
remember SAE??? the order they went in is very important.
getting a better ground speed by flying in 10 knots of headwind compared to 20 knots of headwind is more beneficial dont you think?????....
and this is by changing alttudes from 9500 feet to 7500 feet and this was over a 420 nm sector. me thinks that I saved more than 2 mins....
and did safety suffer????
not at all!!!!!!!!
I think it showed my professnalism. efficency is thinking two steps ahead, a bit like a chess game.
remember SAE??? the order they went in is very important.
Guest
Posts: n/a
Sure, in that case you would be plain ignorant if you didnt take advantage of the wind, and if safety and ride are not issues then why not be efficient.
In the BIG PICTURE however, efficiency is not high on the priority list.
Operators (& pilots) should concentrate more on how to make money rather than how to save it.
My opinion only.
Isnt that what this thing is all about?
In the BIG PICTURE however, efficiency is not high on the priority list.
Operators (& pilots) should concentrate more on how to make money rather than how to save it.
My opinion only.
Isnt that what this thing is all about?
Join Date: Aug 2003
Location: AUS
Posts: 78
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
A person willing to listen and learn from their mistakes. Everyone makes mistakes but it is how we deal with them that makes the difference. A who cares attitude or denial is a big negative.
Join Date: Sep 2003
Location: near a lake, need I say more
Posts: 30
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
but you are making money by saving on flight time, as well as not pushing aircraft to the limit. I was told by one operator they had a problem wearing out wing flap bearings on the cessna aircraft they were operating up to 14 flights a day. they needed replacing quite a lot.
The solution was to have pilots operate the flaps 10 - 15 knots less than top of the white line.
what was the outcome???
they had to replace the wing flap bearings less times each year per plane.
the boss said that by changing pilots driving habits he found that he was able to put this saved money back into other areas of the company.
I guess that made his pilots good for other companys in the future.
The solution was to have pilots operate the flaps 10 - 15 knots less than top of the white line.
what was the outcome???
they had to replace the wing flap bearings less times each year per plane.
the boss said that by changing pilots driving habits he found that he was able to put this saved money back into other areas of the company.
I guess that made his pilots good for other companys in the future.
Join Date: May 2003
Location: Australia
Posts: 299
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
In addition to the above.
Motivation, not just a desire to succeed but to do the whole job paper work and all. I have seen to many pilots that were good operators in the air but to bloody lazy to brief students properly, clean the aircraft and keep records and time and duty's up to date. Flying skill is a fine thing but if your lazy you wont get far.
Motivation, not just a desire to succeed but to do the whole job paper work and all. I have seen to many pilots that were good operators in the air but to bloody lazy to brief students properly, clean the aircraft and keep records and time and duty's up to date. Flying skill is a fine thing but if your lazy you wont get far.
I'm sure there are many others but these are just a few that come to mind:
· Conscientious,
· Professional,
· Strong person,
· Positive attitude,
· Performs well under stress and pressure,
· Team-orientated,
· Good communicator,
· Manages his time well,
· Relates well to those around him.
· Conscientious,
· Professional,
· Strong person,
· Positive attitude,
· Performs well under stress and pressure,
· Team-orientated,
· Good communicator,
· Manages his time well,
· Relates well to those around him.
Join Date: Jul 1999
Location: Sydney
Posts: 817
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
112.3
I think you will find that quite a few operators specify company speeds for flaps and landing gear: Two reasons I suppose... firstly is to save wear and tear, secondly as a buffer for the pilot.
It is al very well to be efficient, but if the charter / pax don't want to fly with you... you can be as efficient as you want, cos no one will be complaining. Two mins per sector will work well IF your MR is in hours and minutes, not hours and decimals of hours.
Safety is always the first priority.
I think you will find that quite a few operators specify company speeds for flaps and landing gear: Two reasons I suppose... firstly is to save wear and tear, secondly as a buffer for the pilot.
It is al very well to be efficient, but if the charter / pax don't want to fly with you... you can be as efficient as you want, cos no one will be complaining. Two mins per sector will work well IF your MR is in hours and minutes, not hours and decimals of hours.
Safety is always the first priority.