Extra Check For Airline Pilot
 

Hello everybody I would like to know what do you think about this. An airline wants an extra check to its pilots (captains and first officers). This airline wants to qualify them as "excellent, very good, good, regular or poor". I really don´t know how can this airline can qualify a technical work, are gonna check if you have a smooth landing? I think that there is a lot of check´s that a pilot that works for an airline must overcome every year, medical, sim check ride, line check, etc.
Please send you oppinion about this, is there any FAA rule or ICAO rule about or against this procedure? Do you know any airline that apply these kind of qualification to its pilots?

THANKS

The FAA only decides whether a pilot "meets the standard" or not.

In the US, doctors regulate themselves with the AMA, lawyers with the ABA, who but us can be fired twice a year for the medical, twice for sim checks, once for line check, and just anytime management gets bored and wants a ride? I'm retired, I miss the flying, but not all the other sh@t.

More Information
 

According to the latest news, this check is not technical, they will check you if you are well dressed, if you have long hair, if you have moustache. In one word, they will check if you look good. They will also check if you are a leader pilot when you are with your team, they will see if you use nice words to explain the purser that you have to cross bad weather.
With all this information about you they will qualify as a excellent employee, very good, good, regular or bad.

I will be waiting for your reply.

JAA countries are now introducing more CRM markers into the OPC/LPC assesments. Included are such things as crew communication and interaction as well as leadership and listening /reasoning skills. If you add in a degree of personal presentation, then it sounds very similar to what you are describing.

To be honest I cannot see why this should be a problem for most people. Working as a team leader/member, and good communication skills with the purser and eveyone else shouldn't be a challenge that many proficient pilots, and certainly Captains, should be anything less than "good" at. As we all know there is far more to the job than just the technical aspects.

This has nothing to do with regulation -- it is company policy only.

What are the criteria for the various ratings?

What are they going to do with the results?

The criteria is not defined yet, but if you don´t pay attention to the things you have to improve and you are still on your on way they will apply a kind of punishment. To start you will be "observed" then you will be suspended for a period of time and at last you will be fired.

My company (UK) grade pilots on the following scale

1. Exceed
2. Standard
3. Basic
4. Fail

I don't think this is unusual in the UK.

diena you seem to have fully understood the process of this supposed check regime, however I would be interested to know where the company states it will suspend you then fire you?

For the UK, the check process is an accepted regime and no pilot should be fired over it without very serious observations being made, along with other supporting evidence of misconduct. Each pilot must undergo statutory Licence Proficiency Checks and Operational Proficiency Checks on a 6 month basis. A Line Check is then conducted annually where a normal line flight is observed without interrogation. Within these three checks the CRM NOTECH Behavioural Assessment is graded accordingly; this considers all sorts of behaviour over the session.

In addition to the above checks (which are a governing authority requirement such as the UK CAA) which are conducted by the Training Department, management pilots are also obliged to fulfill Flight Operations Audits to satisfy the company's Quality Control which forms part of the Aircraft Operators Certificate. This is generally to observe trends of errors / irresponsible operating / company standard procedure deviations so they may be addressed fleet wide. Only in very isolated cases of a severe compromise of safety would they lead to personal debrief and possible disciplinary implications.

Frankly, if you behave yourself, take a pride in your work and attempt to keep up to speed with standard procedures, a check flight should not worry you.