Left hand seat
 

First post from an undeniable wannabe.

The desire to get in the left hand seat seems to be the basis for most of the discussion on here. I just wondered what is the driving factor behind it. Surely the most important thing is that you're flying, which is what made you follow your career path in the first place.

Is it financial ? Recognition ? Need to be in control ? Or is it just something to bitch about ?

Probably a hugely over simplified question for something that is significant to most of you, so I apologise in advance. Personally I wouldn't mind sitting in the toilet if it meant I could work in aviation.

flames

methinks you'll need to reassess your goals.
If your ambition is to reach the toilet theres a good chance thats where you'll end up.
C'mon now, straightn up and aim for that LH seat...:cool:

Primarily recognition, I would suggest, but also self-esteem.

When you are given the responsibility of being in charge of a corporation on whose success depends the lives of circa 200/300 people and (potentially) millions of pounds/dollars of liability then I think this says something about how much people trust you to make the right decisions.

Yes the money is nice but I believe that if you can retire from an aviation career having made it to command you feel a great sense of achievement.

Flames. there's nothing wrong with being prepared to do whatever it takes to get a foot in the door of this great industry, don't let people put you down, However, I think you'll find that as you get further, you will naturally want to "run your own show". Command is the ultimate aim, since not only are you enjoying the flying, but also, as Bob says, taking responsibility for your actions, based upon you own judgement of your ability.

Go enjoy being a "wannabe", enjoy being a new commercial pilot, enjoy your first right-hand-seat position, enjoy your eventual command, enjoy being a retiree. Most of all, enjoy !!

For me, I sit in the L hand seat for one reason and one reason alone..... MONEY! If the company would pay me the same amount to sit in the R hand seat... no problem. If they would pay me the same to sit at home permanently... even better still.

Thanks Easy Glider -- exactly my own thoughts.

Too many egocentrics in this industry. (and they're just as dangerous in the right seat !) Such is human nature.

And too much unjust blame and it's consequences are directed at "the Captain" purely because he's the cheap and easy target and for no other reason. So why volunteer, unless for the cash ?

As one who has been a turboprop captain and now a jet FO, it is cearly better and infinitely more satisfying to 'run your own show'. You have to see the RHS as a vital and necessary apprenticeship from which much could and should be gleaned. Nevertheless, it is a great moment when someone believes in you sufficiently to put you in the left seat of a big shiny jet. I would say that it is normal, and indeed essential, for any aspiring pilot to want to be captain one day. The lack of such desire shows something fundamentally lacking. It would also be fair to say that there is no company I have ever heard of who would take on a new pilot if they did not believe that in time he/she would have a strong likeliehood of being in command of their own aircraft. Whether or not they enjoy the left seat when they get it is another matter.

There are all sorts of apocryphal tales of people who should have been promoted but were not. However, the bottom line is that if you aspire to become a commercial pilot then you must display command potential. If you do not, you will quite rightly not be offered employment.

Thanks all.
 

Thanks gents. I was mildly worried I was going to get hosed for asking a dumb question.

Is there any history of pilots switching over to the left and then going back to the dark side ? ( other than disciplinary action. )

Yes there is a history of pilots swapping seats - it is actually very common and I have done so myself. I was previously a turboprop training captain and am now a jet First Officer which is a very common thing. As you will be aware, most airlines promote people on seniority which means that those who have been there the longest get first crack at the good deals! Whatever your previous history when you join a new company is by and large unimportant - you just join the bottom of a long seniority list and hope for expansion of the company or that a lot of people above you leave or retire! People like me just have to wait for a slot to come up and apply for it. Assuming you are basically suitable (passed all you route check flights and simulator checks to a sufficient standard) then you get put on another command course.

In somewhere like BA, it is common for someone to be a captain with his previous company on a 737, and then to give it all up to be an FO for several years on joining BA. Eventually, he may then elect to be a 737 captain again or to be an FO on 747s for years. He may even elect after some time to be an Airbus captain before going back to being a 747-400 FO and so it goes on. Seniority is King, and the higher up the list you are the greater your choices - particularly in the big airlines like BA, Lufthansa, Air France, United Airlines, American Airlines and so on.

As I have said previously, however, the name of the game is to get into the left hand seat. For some reason (human nature I guess!), there is a widespread perception that the bigger the jet the better the deal! For example flying 747s is widely considered more prestigous than flying 737s. Such is life!