Ask Captain Lim - Many questions about a pilot's life

Thanks for the vast amount of information you have provided for all of us on your easy-to-use web site.

I have a few simple questions regarding your life as a pilot. I guess the answers might vary according to which airline the pilot flies for. But I would like to know how you live your life when on the job.

1. I have heard that the pilots do not stay at the same hotel with the rest of the crew. Is that true? Is there such a clear 'class difference'?

2. Do you have to stay with your co pilot in the same room or do you get to have your own private room? Do you have a choice of the accommodation or does the airline already make all the arrangements for you (since they're paying?)

3. Do you always fly with the same crew and the same co-pilots? If you fly with a different colleague each time, is it easy to get accustomed to different pilots' way of working? I would think that with a standard team that flies each time, the communication and working style, expectations, etc would be smoother.

4. Do you always fly the same zones to the same countries? Do you really get to see the world or is the traveling limited to the areas you're designated to fly?

Thanks for answering the questions I have. I believe these have not been asked in your FAQs as I have viewed through your entire archive.

Thank you Captain Lim.

Regards,

Keet

Hi Keet,

1. Depending on which airline one is flying with, crew can stay together in the same hotel or in different hotels (as in the case of SIA). It is all a matter of company policy.

2. All the crew have private individual rooms. Usually, the company would consult with the pilots' union when making the arrangement for hotels. It has to meet the standard required as agreed in the negotiation, especially, the hotel must be in a comfortable and quiet location so that the crew can have an uninterrupted rest.

3. I don't get to fly with the same crew all the time. This is not a problem at all because all captains and co pilots are trained to adhere to a standard company procedure. A company may have up to 1000 pilots and so it is not possible nor practicable to have the same set of crew flying together all the time.

4. A pilot can fly through many time zones in a month's roster but there are flight time and rest limitations built-in to cater for it. Pilots are given sufficient time to recover at home after a long flight through many time zones.

Yes, I do get to see the world a lot - that's the privilege of being a pilot. If I am not flying on duty, my annual free ticket would allow me to travel anywhere the airlines operate. At other times, I can travel inter-airline anywhere at around 10 percent of the ticketed fare.