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Written by Capt Lim
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Saturday, 30 January 2010 04:35 |
Dear Capt Lim,
I am a 32 years old Chinese female Fight Attendant flying with Qatar Airways for many years now. I am planning to switch my career to become a pilot to fulfill my childhood dream and also to pursue a better future.
I have consulted our Chief Pilot here. He told me that there is a Second Officer program here and the requirement is JAA CPL + IR + FROZEN JAA ATPL + BELOW 28 years old. So it means that I am not able to meet this requirement.
The First Officer needs the same qualification but FULL ATPL with 1500 hours and below 45 years old. How do I get these hours and how long will it takes?
Some of my friends have gone to get their licenses in South Africa. It has one of the cheapest flying school where one can get the ICAO licenses. Some say, Cebu Flying School in the Philippine is good too. Malaysia is too expensive to get the above mentioned licenses. It is said that some Asian countries will require many pilots, especially in the Chinese Mainland.
Do you think I can find a Second Officer position in these Asian airlines if I am in possession of JAA CPL + IR + FROZEN JAA ATPL? How can I complete 1500 hours in a shortest time? Do you think I have chance to become a Cadet Pilot in a year or two?
Thank you for your time.
Best Regards.
Yours sincerely,
Helena
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Written by Capt Lim
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Monday, 25 January 2010 18:02 |
Dear Capt Lim,
Why the loss of radar contact always happen before the crash? What I mean to say is that, why can’t the radar keep contact of the plane even after the failure (just before crashing)?
I am Ethiopian and today, our plane has crashed.
I need to know about the possible causes of the crash, if you can tell me.
Biniyam Teka.
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Written by Capt Lim
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Friday, 08 January 2010 08:43 |
Dear Captain Lim,
I am a transfer student deciding between UCLA and UCSB for a B.A. in Economics.
Personally, I would rather go to UCSB. However, UCLA has a better reputation. Should I sacrifice my desire to go to Santa Barbara for a better school's reputation on my resume?
I think it will give me only a slightly higher chance, but I am looking to apply for Cathay Pacific's Cadet Pilot program, and the employers in Hong Kong will definitely recognize UCLA's name, but maybe not UCSB.
It's a pretty big dilemma I'm having!
Thanks!
Sincerely,
Brian Tsui
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Written by Capt Lim
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Thursday, 07 January 2010 10:55 |
Hello Capt Lim,
I was at a dinner party the other night when the topic of air travel came up. We were talking about de-icing in a commercial jet when someone said that they only do this to free up the flaps when the planes are on the ground.
He went on to say that not only are the wings of a passenger jet heated but even in the coldest of weather, when the jet is in flight, wind is passing so quickly over the wing, the friction that the air produces heats the wings to an almost HOT temperature...
I found this hard to believe... The space shuttle on re-entry - yes... but a passenger jet???
Can you shed some light on this for me?
Thanks
Toby
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Written by Capt Lim
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Sunday, 03 January 2010 10:38 |
Dear Capt Lim,
Thank you for this amazingly informative and helpful site. Even though I have studied some fluid mechanics and some of the information is familiar, I have learned many things from a pilot's real-world perspective that I wish I knew much earlier.
We recently flew AS860 (12/31/09) from HNL to SEA. The turbulence was the worst I'd ever experienced, featuring some of the unpleasant side-to-side motion that you have talked about before, and causing major spillage from a beverage cart -- though I guess the turbulence would be classified as moderate to severe, not extreme. I was frankly amazed that the pilots could maintain controlled flight. It was enough to give me some anxiety about flying -- something that I've never had in the past 40+ years of routine air travel.
This recent experience made me wonder about some things. Pardon me if you have covered these in your Turbulence FAQ, but after reading the whole FAQ I didn't see these addressed exactly -- perhaps I missed them.
1. As a pilot, how do you control the stick and pedals when your whole body is being violently thrown around? While this isn't a factor for the autopilot, I think you mentioned before that in bad weather, the pilot sometimes takes over. That would seem extraordinarily difficult, physically and mentally.
2. Even on autopilot, the captain and/or co-pilot presumably needs to monitor what's happening and be ready to take over. That said, how does a pilot maintain a sense of orientation and focus when the plane is being violently tossed about on all 3 axes?
3. I was surprised to hear that it is customary to reduce power before entering turbulence. It makes sense, but isn't there a danger of a stall condition (especially if there happen to be strong tailwind gusts) or some type of lateral movement or rotation that puts the plane in an unflyable position? That is always my biggest worry.
4. Does the autopilot "know" enough to reduce power when flying into turbulence?
5. From what I can infer, the pilots on our plane did an outstanding job of seeking and finding a smoother flight level. About what percentage of the time does this approach -- seeking a smoother flight level -- actually work to alleviate the turbulence? Is there a particular method involved (eg first go up, then down)? It would help to know in advance what to expect.
6. Can the autopilot automatically seek out a smooth flight level as well, and is it effective at doing so?
7. Is there any way to look up how the pilots of our particular flight classified the turbulence we experienced that day? I would like to get some perspective on what we experienced. I think different people on the flight would have different opinions on whether walking and food service would have been possible (in practice food service was suspended).
8. I see that you flew the 777. Mostly I wind up flying on 737s -- typically the -800. I'm assuming that this model (with 40+ years of service, 10+ as the -800) is also capable of handling severe turbulence as well as any other airplane, but could you please confirm that?
Thanks in advance for any and all answers -- they will greatly ease my anxiety. I would also like to have an answer when a family member worriedly asks "What's happening?" -- as happened on my aforementioned flight. All I could manage was a weak "just hang on," but with your help I can be calmer myself and more helpful to my family. I'll give you due credit for the information of course.  And if you choose to post this Q&A publicly, I hope other readers will benefit as well.
RM
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