Airline Pilot Medical Requirements
What are the medical requirements to become a pilot…
To exercise the privileges of a Commercial Pilots Licence, you must be in possession of a valid Class 1 Medical certificate. This is something you should seek to obtain before you start your flight training just in case a medical condition (which on occasions people aren’t already aware of), prohibits you from being awarded a Class One Medical certification.
The requirements are not particularly stringent, and a normal healthy person should have no problem being awarded one. The medical examiners are generally concerned with if you have the ability to do the job of a commercial pilot without difficulty or impedance, such as due to reduced mobility, poor hearing or eyesight and that the potential for you to suffer from acute incapacitation (such as due to a seizure, collapse, heart attack or stroke etc.) is negligible.
Airline Pilot Medical Requirements
The very first recommendation to any aspiring pilot is to obtain a Pilot Class One Medical certificate. This is a mandatory requirement for all airline flight crew in order to operate a jet commercially. For a UK or European issued medical certificate, the initial assessment can take place with a specifically authorised CAA Aviation Medical Examiner (AME) listed on their website.
Unfortunately people invest significant amounts of money in obtaining a Private Pilot’s Licence (requiring only a class two medical), with the view to continue training towards a commercial licence. They can then find out that they were ineligible for a class one medical, and are therefore unable to pursue a commercial piloting career. So make sure you can pass the medical requirements before commencing your pilot training.
Initial Class One Pilot Medical Assessment
During the initial Class One medical assessment you are tested and checked for a general level of good health and any specific disqualifying conditions are identified. Unfortunately for some, this occasion may highlight an underlying medical condition which has not before been detected, and the medical certificate will not be issued. Some conditions are not necessarily disqualifying but may require further investigation and testing.
What’s included in a Pilot Class One Medical Assessment?
The following is assessed at the initial examination:
Disclaimer: The information below has been taken from the UK CAA website. We have provided the information for use as a guide only. Any medical enquiries should be directed to the regulatory authority for your country. This guidance was correct at the time of posting but may since have changed. The list is non-exhaustive.
- Medical history review
- Eyesight test – “If you wear glasses or contact lenses it is important to take your last optician’s report along to the examination. An applicant may be assessed as fit with hypermetropia not exceeding +5.0 dioptres, myopia not exceeding -6.0 dioptres, astigmatism not exceeding 2.0 dioptres, and anisometropia not exceeding 2.0 dioptres, provided that optimal correction has been considered and no significant pathology is demonstrated. Monocular visual acuities should be 6/6 or better.”
- Hearing test – “Applicants may not have a hearing loss of more than 35dB at any of the frequencies 500Hz, 1000Hz or 2000Hz, or more than 50dB at 3000Hz, in either ear separately.”
- Physical Examination – “A general check that all is functioning correctly. It will cover lungs, heart, blood pressure, stomach, limbs and nervous system.”
- Electrocardiogram (ECG) – “This measures the electrical impulses passing through your heart. It can show disorders of the heart rhythm or of the conduction of the impulses, and sometimes it can show a lack of blood supplying the heart muscle. Changes on an ECG require further investigation. A report from a cardiologist and further tests (for example an exercise ECG) may need to be done.”
- Lung function test (spirometry) – “This tests your ability to expel air rapidly from your lungs. Abnormal lung function or respiratory problems, e.g. asthma will require reports by a specialist in respiratory disease (UK CAA Asthma guidance and Guidance for Respiratory Reports).”
- Haemoglobin blood test – “This is a finger prick blood test which measures the oxygen carrying capacity of the blood. A low haemoglobin is called anaemia and will need further investigation.”
- Urine test – “You will be asked to provide a sample of urine, so remember to attend for examination with a full bladder. This tests for sugar (diabetes), protein or blood in the urine.”
All content in the quotation marks has been referenced from the UK CAA medical website.
How strict is the Class One Medical examination it?
The award of Class One Medical certifications seems to be more lenient as science and studies have evolved. For example, it is now permissible to hold a Class One Medical if you have either Type 1 or 2 diabetes as long as you demonstrate you can effectively manage your blood sugar levels. If there are any doubts as to your fitness to hold a medical, you may be required to demonstrate your competency in the simulator (for example a practical hearing observation).
Operational Multi-Crew Limitation (OML)
Some conditions (such as diabetes), whilst not immediately disqualifying, my require a restriction to be placed on your authority to operate a commercial aircraft. This is referred to as an Operational Multi-crew Limitation or OML. This allows you to exercise your class one medical privileges only as part of a multi-crew environment. Crew who have an OML restriction may not fly together as part of a 2 crew flight, and an OML holder may not fly with another pilot over the age of 60.
Pilot Medical Renewal
After the medical initial issue, you are required to attend a medical assessment on an annual basis until the age of 60, then every six months until you reach 65 which is the age at which class one medical privileges are revoked.
Items such as ECG and audiograms are retested at periodic intervals, increasing in frequency with age. For example, ECGs are carried out every 2 years between the ages of 30-39 then yearly until 59, then every 6 months until retirement.
What if I Can’t Get a Pilot Class One Medical?
For those unlucky enough not to be able to obtain a class one medical, you may still be able to hold a class two medical which allows you to operate light aircraft with a private pilot’s licence (PPL). A class two medical is effectively a less stringent class one medical, with test renewals initially taking place every two years.
Pilot Medical Revoked
A commercial pilot is reliant on maintaining his or her class one medical in order to exercise their flying privileges. The regulatory authority may revoke the medical at any time, consequently grounding the pilot either temporarily or permanently. Some pilots find themselves in a position where there medical is revoked due to a medical condition occurring.
With continual developments in scientific knowledge and medical treatment, coupled with the regulatory authorities occasionally reviewing the disqualifying conditions, some people have managed to get back into flying commercially after fearing their career was over due to a lost medical.
What may have previously been a disqualifying condition, is now often assessed on an individual basis.
It’s worth considering having some additional loss of income insurance (or loss of medical insurance) in place to ensure you are financially secure if you do lose your medical. Trying to find another job which offers a similar level of remuneration as a pilot’s salary is not easy.
How to Finance Commercial Flight Training
How to Finance Commercial Pilot Training: Funding, Loans & Scholarships
Updated 12 October 2026 | A comprehensive guide to financing airline pilot training in the UK.
For many aspiring airline pilots, the biggest obstacle to achieving their ambition isn’t necessarily the difficulty of learning to fly or passing the required examinations. It’s finding the money to pay for professional flight training.
Becoming a commercial airline pilot can involve a substantial financial commitment. Depending on the training route, organisation and qualifications required, the total cost can reach £100,000 or more. For somebody leaving school or considering a career change, raising that amount of money can understandably seem daunting.
However, there are several potential ways to fund professional pilot training. These include airline-funded cadet programmes, aviation scholarships, personal savings, modular training completed alongside employment, family assistance and borrowing.
Each option has advantages, limitations and financial risks. Some applicants may be eligible for a fully funded airline training programme, while others may need to build their qualifications progressively over several years.
Importantly, you don’t necessarily need to borrow a six-figure sum or secure a loan against a family property to become an airline pilot. Although some people choose that approach, it isn’t the only route available.
In this guide, we’ll explain the different ways to finance commercial flight training, where to look for sponsorship and scholarships, how pilot training loans work and what you should consider before committing a substantial amount of money.
We’ll also discuss the financial risks associated with professional training and explain how you can take steps to protect your investment.
How Can You Afford to Become an Airline Pilot?
There are several realistic approaches to financing professional flight training. The most suitable option depends on your circumstances, eligibility, financial resources and the training opportunities available.
Airline-Funded Training
Apply for a fully funded airline cadet programme where the airline meets the specified training costs.
Modular Training
Complete your qualifications progressively, allowing you to continue earning and pay for training in stages.
Savings & Scholarships
Use personal savings, family assistance or suitable aviation scholarships to cover some or all of the cost.
Loans & Finance
Consider borrowing where affordable, taking particular care with interest costs, repayment obligations and any security required.
Our advice: Investigate airline-funded programmes and other opportunities before assuming you need to take out a large loan. If self-funding is necessary, compare the complete cost of integrated and modular training and consider the financial consequences if employment takes longer than expected.
No training route guarantees airline employment, so it is essential to have a realistic financial plan.
In This Guide
- How much money do you need for pilot training?
- Comparing the main funding options
- Fully funded airline cadet programmes
- Pilot training scholarships and bursaries
- Paying for modular training while working
- Personal savings and family assistance
- Commercial pilot training loans
- Government student finance and university courses
- The military pilot training route
- Protecting your money when paying a flight school
- Creating a realistic training budget
- Frequently asked questions
How Much Does It Cost to Become an Airline Pilot?
Before considering how to finance professional flight training, it’s important to establish approximately how much money you’ll need.
The cost varies considerably depending on the training organisation, country, licensing authority and whether you choose integrated or modular training.
Integrated training normally involves enrolling on a structured, full-time programme that includes the principal stages of professional flight training within one coordinated course.
Modular training allows students to complete the necessary qualifications through separate approved courses, potentially using different training organisations.
Both routes can lead towards the professional qualifications needed to apply for suitable airline First Officer vacancies.
However, the cost and payment arrangements can be very different.
Professional Pilot Training Can Exceed £100,000
To provide an indication of current costs, British Airways stated that its fully funded 2026 Speedbird Pilot Academy covered approximately £100,000 in training costs for successful applicants.
Similarly, Jet2 described the commercial pilot training costs covered by its Jet2FlightPath programme as exceeding £100,000.
These are examples of the costs associated with particular airline training programmes, rather than fixed prices for all professional flight training.
Some courses may be less expensive, particularly where students complete their qualifications modularly. Others may cost more once additional training, accommodation and living expenses are included.
It’s also important to remember that the advertised price may not represent the total amount you’ll eventually spend.
Costs That May Not Be Included in Your Training Package
- Initial Class 1 medical examination.
- Aptitude tests and training organisation selection fees.
- Additional flying hours beyond the advertised allowance.
- ATPL theoretical examination fees and resits.
- Licensing authority fees and skill tests.
- MCC or APS MCC training, where not included.
- Advanced Upset Prevention and Recovery Training (UPRT).
- Accommodation and living expenses.
- Travel between training locations.
- Equipment, uniform and training materials.
- Aircraft type rating costs, where applicable.
- Loan interest, arrangement fees and other borrowing costs.
Before comparing training programmes, obtain a written breakdown of what is included in the advertised price and what may cost extra.
For a more detailed explanation of training expenses, read our How Much Does It Cost to Train as a Pilot? guide.
Commercial Pilot Training Funding Options Compared
There are several ways to approach the financial challenge of becoming an airline pilot.
The following table provides an overview of the main options and their advantages and limitations.
| Funding Option | Potential Advantages | Important Considerations |
|---|---|---|
| Fully funded airline programme | Can remove much of the financial burden of professional training. | Highly competitive, limited places and specific eligibility or contractual requirements. |
| Scholarships and bursaries | May cover some flying costs without conventional borrowing. | Many awards support introductory or PPL training rather than the entire commercial course. |
| Modular pay-as-you-go training | Can spread costs and allow continued employment during some stages. | Requires careful planning, with some professional courses needing full-time attendance. |
| Personal savings | Avoids loan interest and long-term repayment obligations. | May take several years and requires sufficient contingency funds. |
| Family assistance | May reduce the amount of commercial borrowing required. | Financial agreements and potential risks to family members must be understood. |
| Personal or secured loans | Can make funds available sooner. | Interest, repayments, security and the risk of unemployment can create substantial financial exposure. |
| University-linked training | Eligible academic course elements may qualify for student finance. | Student finance does not normally cover commercial flying training costs. |
| Military flying career | Provides professional military training within a paid service career. | Requires military selection, service commitments and a genuine interest in the military role. |
For some applicants, the most appropriate approach may involve a combination of these options.
For example, someone might obtain a PPL through a scholarship, continue working while completing modular training and use personal savings to reduce the amount of additional borrowing required.
However, combining different funding sources requires careful planning to ensure each stage remains financially manageable.
Fully Funded Airline Cadet Pilot Programmes
One of the most attractive opportunities for aspiring pilots is obtaining a place on a fully funded airline cadet training programme.
Under these arrangements, an airline or sponsoring organisation covers specified professional training costs for successful applicants.
This can remove one of the most significant barriers to entering the aviation industry.
Fully funded programmes are particularly valuable to candidates who demonstrate the necessary aptitude and motivation but do not have access to substantial savings or family financial support.
However, places are limited and selection can be highly competitive.
British Airways Speedbird Pilot Academy
British Airways has established a fully funded pilot training programme through its Speedbird Pilot Academy.
In April 2026, the airline announced an investment of £18 million to support up to 160 cadet places.
British Airways stated that the programme would cover approximately £100,000 in pilot training costs for successful applicants.
The 2026 programme also included arrangements covering training accommodation, a subsistence allowance and an aircraft type rating, subject to the applicable programme terms.
For eligible applicants, this provides a significantly different financial proposition from paying independently for an integrated course.
However, the programme has a demanding selection process and specific academic, medical and other eligibility criteria.
The 2026 application window closed in April. Applicants interested in future opportunities should monitor the official British Airways Careers website rather than assuming applications are currently open.
British Airways Speedbird Pilot Academy →
Jet2FlightPath
Jet2 has also introduced a fully funded pathway for aspiring airline pilots.
In February 2026, the airline announced that its Jet2FlightPath programme would provide at least 60 additional aspiring pilots with the opportunity to undertake professional training without self-funding the advertised training costs.
The airline described the cost of the training as exceeding £100,000 and explained that the programme was designed to provide opportunities to applicants from different backgrounds.
As with other funded programmes, successful applicants must satisfy the selection criteria and meet the required standards throughout training.
Programme availability, application deadlines and contractual arrangements should always be checked directly with Jet2.
Read Jet2’s Jet2FlightPath Announcement →
Important: Not All Airline Cadet Programmes Are Fully Funded
An airline-branded cadet programme does not automatically mean the airline pays for your training.
Different programmes may offer very different financial and employment arrangements.
- Fully funded: The airline covers the specified training costs.
- Partially funded: The airline or another organisation contributes towards certain costs.
- Self-funded cadet programme: The applicant finances training despite the programme being associated with an airline.
- Mentored programme: The airline may provide guidance or recruitment opportunities without necessarily funding training.
- Conditional employment pathway: Employment may be offered subject to successful training, assessment and other contractual conditions.
- Loan-supported programme: Financing may be available through a particular arrangement, but the student may still remain responsible for repayment.
Always obtain the written programme terms before accepting an offer. Establish who is responsible for the training costs, what happens if you fail a stage and whether any repayment or employment obligations apply.
How Can You Improve Your Chances of Obtaining a Funded Place?
Because funded programmes can attract large numbers of applicants, preparation is important.
Airline cadet selection processes commonly assess more than academic qualifications.
Depending on the airline, applicants may encounter:
- Numerical reasoning and aptitude assessments.
- Spatial awareness and coordination exercises.
- Interviews assessing motivation and suitability.
- Group exercises and teamwork assessments.
- Technical or general aviation knowledge questions.
- Medical and other eligibility checks.
Research the profession thoroughly, understand the responsibilities of an airline pilot and prepare for the type of selection process associated with your chosen programme.
Most importantly, apply through the official recruitment channel and verify that the opportunity is genuine.
For more information, see our Flight Training Sponsorship Options guide.
Pilot Training Scholarships and Bursaries
Scholarships and bursaries offer another potential source of financial assistance for aspiring pilots.
Various aviation organisations and charitable bodies provide awards designed to help individuals begin flying or develop their qualifications.
However, it’s important to distinguish between an aviation scholarship and full sponsorship of an airline pilot training programme.
Many scholarships provide a limited number of flying hours, introductory training or support towards a Private Pilot Licence (PPL).
These awards can be extremely valuable, but they don’t necessarily pay for the full commercial training pathway.
The Air League
The Air League provides scholarships and other opportunities intended to help individuals gain experience in aviation and develop their potential careers.
Its flying scholarship programmes include introductory and more advanced awards.
For example, published opportunities include awards providing several hours of powered flying, with some programmes supporting further progression towards solo flying or a PPL.
Eligibility criteria, application windows and the training provided vary between awards.
Some scholarships require applicants to meet particular age, residency, medical or membership criteria.
These opportunities can be particularly useful for people who want to begin flying but cannot yet afford substantial training costs.
Explore Air League Flying Scholarships →
The Honourable Company of Air Pilots
The Honourable Company of Air Pilots also provides flying scholarships, supported by a range of sponsors and charitable organisations.
Its awards have included PPL scholarships, gliding scholarships and instructor training opportunities.
In 2026, the organisation announced twelve PPL scholarships, five Flight Instructor scholarships and forty-eight gliding scholarships.
For a successful applicant, a PPL scholarship may provide a substantial contribution towards the early stages of a professional flying career.
However, recipients must still arrange funding for any additional training required to obtain their commercial qualifications.
Explore Air Pilots Flying Scholarships →
How to Approach Scholarship Applications
Scholarships are worth investigating, particularly if you’re at the beginning of your aviation journey.
However, we’d recommend keeping a few points in mind:
- Check the current eligibility criteria carefully.
- Establish exactly which flying or training costs are covered.
- Consider whether the award can be used towards your intended licensing pathway.
- Understand any obligations associated with accepting the scholarship.
- Prepare a thoughtful application demonstrating genuine motivation and commitment.
- Continue planning how to finance the remaining stages of professional training.
Don’t assume an award described as a flying scholarship will automatically fund a complete commercial pilot licence.
Financing Modular Flight Training While You Work
For applicants who cannot obtain a fully funded programme and do not have enough savings for an integrated course, modular flight training may provide a more manageable financial approach.
Modular training involves completing the various professional qualifications through separate approved courses.
Rather than committing to one continuous programme, you can progress through the different stages when you have the necessary experience, time and funds.
For example, you might begin by obtaining a PPL at a local flying school, continue working while building flying experience and save towards the professional theory, CPL and instrument rating stages.
This approach can spread the financial commitment over a longer period and potentially reduce the amount of borrowing required.
How Does the Modular Training Route Work?
A typical modular pathway includes:
- Private Pilot Licence: Complete the initial training required to qualify for private flying.
- Hour building: Accumulate the relevant flying experience required for later professional courses.
- ATPL theoretical knowledge: Complete the approved ground school and examinations.
- Commercial Pilot Licence: Undertake professional practical flight training and the required skill test.
- Multi-engine and instrument qualifications: Obtain the relevant privileges for the intended professional pathway.
- MCC or APS MCC and Advanced UPRT: Complete the appropriate additional professional training.
The actual sequence may differ, depending on the approved courses and qualifications already held.
The main financial advantage is that you may be able to spread your expenditure across the different stages instead of having to arrange funding for the entire course at the outset.
Can You Continue Working During Modular Training?
During some stages, particularly PPL training, hour building and certain theoretical knowledge courses, it may be possible to continue working.
This allows you to earn money and contribute towards the cost of training while maintaining greater financial flexibility.
However, it is important to understand that modular does not mean every stage can be completed casually or entirely in your spare time.
Some practical professional courses require concentrated periods of training and must follow the applicable approved syllabus.
Long interruptions may also increase costs because additional flying can be needed to maintain proficiency.
Examination credit and aircraft ratings have validity requirements, which should be considered when planning the overall training schedule.
Is Modular Training Cheaper Than Integrated Training?
Modular training can be less expensive, particularly when students carefully compare providers and manage their hour building.
However, it is not automatically cheaper in every case.
The final cost depends on factors such as aircraft rental rates, additional training hours, course fees, travel, accommodation and how efficiently the programme is completed.
A poorly planned modular programme can become considerably more expensive than originally expected.
Conversely, a carefully organised modular route may reduce both the total training cost and the amount of money that needs to be borrowed.
For a detailed comparison, read our Integrated vs Modular Flight Training Guide.
Funding Pilot Training Through Savings and Family Assistance
Another approach is to build up the money required before starting professional flight training.
This may involve working in another industry for several years, saving regularly and keeping your training fund separate from money needed for everyday expenses.
Although this approach can delay the start of your aviation career, it offers an important advantage: you may be able to complete training with less debt.
Some aspiring pilots choose to save enough to complete their training without borrowing, while others use savings to fund the initial stages before considering additional finance.
For somebody pursuing the modular route, the process may involve alternating periods of employment, saving and training.
The Advantages of Saving Before Training
The most obvious advantage is avoiding or reducing the interest and charges associated with borrowing.
It can also provide greater financial security if your circumstances change during training or airline employment takes longer than expected.
However, savings take time to accumulate, and the cost of flight training may change while you’re preparing.
It is therefore sensible to review training prices periodically and consider how much contingency funding you’ll need.
Can Family Members Help Fund Pilot Training?
Some aspiring pilots receive financial assistance from parents, grandparents or other family members.
This might take the form of a gift, an informal family loan or assistance with particular training expenses.
Family support can reduce the amount of commercial borrowing required, but it should still be approached carefully.
If money is being lent rather than gifted, it’s worth agreeing the repayment arrangements and what happens if circumstances change.
For substantial sums, obtaining independent legal and financial advice may help protect everyone involved.
The situation becomes more serious when family members are asked to guarantee a bank loan or provide their property as security. These arrangements create obligations and risks that are quite different from simply contributing money towards training.
Commercial Pilot Training Loans Explained
Borrowing money is another potential way to finance professional flight training.
However, the amount required for a complete professional course can make obtaining suitable finance difficult.
Some applicants investigate personal loans, specialist educational finance or lending secured against property.
The availability, interest rate, repayment period and security requirements depend on the lender and the borrower’s circumstances.
It’s important not to assume that every bank offers a specialist pilot training loan, or that a lender will approve an application simply because the borrower has been accepted by a flight school.
Unsecured Personal Loans
An unsecured personal loan does not normally require you to provide a particular property as security for the borrowing.
However, lenders will assess factors such as your income, credit history, existing financial commitments and ability to repay.
The amount available may be insufficient to finance an entire commercial pilot training programme.
For this reason, some modular students may consider smaller amounts of borrowing for particular stages of training rather than attempting to finance the complete pathway with one loan.
However, unsecured borrowing still carries risks. Failure to meet repayments can result in additional charges, damage to your credit history and recovery action by the lender.
Loans Secured Against Property
Some people consider borrowing against a property to finance professional flight training.
This might involve remortgaging, taking a further advance or arranging another form of secured borrowing, subject to the lender’s requirements.
Property-backed borrowing can make larger amounts of finance available in some circumstances, but it introduces a particularly serious risk.
If the repayments cannot be maintained, the property used as security may ultimately be at risk of repossession.
This is especially important where a family home is involved.
Professional pilot training does not guarantee employment, and nobody can be certain when a newly qualified pilot will obtain their first airline position.
Before considering property-backed borrowing, the person responsible for the loan should obtain appropriate independent financial and legal advice and understand the full repayment obligations.
Think Carefully Before Securing Pilot Training Against a Family Home
Borrowing against a home to finance a flying career can expose family members to significant financial consequences.
Before entering such an arrangement, consider:
- Who is legally responsible for making the repayments?
- What happens if the student cannot complete training?
- What happens if no airline job is available after graduation?
- Can repayments be maintained using existing income?
- How could an increase in interest rates affect affordability?
- What happens if the family experiences an unexpected financial difficulty?
- What are the consequences if the loan cannot be repaid?
Do not base the affordability of secured borrowing solely on an anticipated future airline salary.
What Is a Guarantor Loan?
A guarantor loan is an arrangement in which another person agrees to become responsible for repayments if the borrower fails to meet their obligations.
The guarantor is often a family member, although lenders may establish their own eligibility criteria.
Importantly, a guarantor loan and a loan secured against property are not necessarily the same thing.
A guarantor may become legally liable for outstanding repayments without a particular property being pledged as security. Other lending arrangements may involve property security as well.
The exact obligations depend on the contract.
If you’re considering asking somebody to act as a guarantor, both parties should understand the risks and obtain appropriate independent advice.
MoneyHelper provides useful information about the responsibilities and potential consequences of becoming a guarantor.
MoneyHelper – Guarantor Loans Explained →
What About Flight Training Loans With Deferred Repayments?
Some educational or specialist lending arrangements may allow repayments to begin after a specified period rather than immediately.
For someone undertaking full-time training without a regular salary, this may initially seem attractive.
However, a repayment holiday doesn’t necessarily mean that interest stops accumulating.
Depending on the loan agreement, interest may continue to be charged and added to the outstanding balance during the period when repayments are deferred.
This can increase the total amount that eventually needs to be repaid.
Before accepting any such arrangement, ask the lender to explain exactly how interest is calculated, when repayments begin and how the outstanding balance may change during training.
What to Check Before Taking Out a Pilot Training Loan
When comparing borrowing arrangements, don’t focus exclusively on the advertised interest rate.
Make sure you understand:
- Amount borrowed: How much money will you actually receive?
- Interest rate: Is it fixed or variable?
- Total amount repayable: How much will you pay over the entire loan term?
- Monthly repayments: How much must you pay and when do repayments begin?
- Repayment holidays: Does interest continue to accumulate during any deferred-payment period?
- Fees: Are there arrangement, administration or other charges?
- Early repayment: Can you repay the loan early, and are there charges for doing so?
- Security: Is property or another asset being used as security?
- Guarantor obligations: Could another person become responsible for the debt?
- Financial difficulties: What happens if you cannot maintain the payments?
Compare the complete cost of borrowing and consider whether repayments remain affordable if your expected career progression does not occur.
Why Future Airline Earnings Shouldn’t Be Your Only Financial Plan
Airline pilots can enjoy rewarding careers, but earnings vary considerably according to employer, aircraft type, experience, base location and seniority.
A newly qualified pilot may not earn the salary they originally anticipated, and obtaining the first flying position can take time.
There may also be further costs associated with type ratings, relocation or maintaining professional qualifications, depending on the circumstances.
For these reasons, borrowing decisions should be based on a realistic assessment of affordability rather than assuming an immediate, well-paid airline position will be available after training.
Can You Get a Government Student Loan for Pilot Training?
This is another common question from aspiring airline pilots.
In England, government-backed higher education student finance is designed primarily to support eligible students attending designated courses.
However, standalone commercial pilot training is not generally treated in the same way as a conventional university degree.
Consequently, you should not assume that a government student loan will cover the cost of obtaining your commercial pilot licence and associated flying experience.
What About University Degrees That Include Flight Training?
Some universities offer aviation-related degrees that incorporate flight training or provide opportunities to undertake professional flying qualifications alongside academic study.
These programmes can create confusion because they combine two different types of expenditure.
Eligible students may be able to obtain student finance for the designated academic elements of an approved degree.
However, the practical flying training required for professional pilot licensing may involve substantial additional fees that are not covered by ordinary government student finance.
In July 2026, the UK Department for Education confirmed that eligible academic elements of designated pilot training degree programmes can receive student finance, but standalone commercial pilot training courses that do not meet the standard eligibility criteria remain outside the scheme.
The funding arrangements differ across the UK, and applicants should establish the specific rules relevant to where they live and study.
Before Applying for a University Aviation Course
Ask the university to explain clearly:
- Which academic tuition fees are eligible for student finance.
- Whether any maintenance support may be available.
- Which practical flight training costs are charged separately.
- Whether the quoted course price includes all required licences and ratings.
- What happens if you discontinue flying training but remain on the academic course.
- Whether additional flying hours or examination attempts involve extra fees.
A degree programme involving aviation does not automatically mean the government will finance the professional flying qualifications.
For the government’s published position, see the Department for Education’s July 2026 Parliamentary Answer.
Becoming a Pilot Through the Military
Another route worth considering is pursuing a flying career in the armed forces.
Military pilots receive the training required for their service role, and successful candidates can develop substantial flying experience while serving.
However, military flying is a career in its own right rather than simply a way to obtain subsidised civilian airline pilot qualifications.
Military selection is competitive, and the role involves operational responsibilities, possible deployments and service commitments.
Applicants should therefore pursue this route because they genuinely want a military aviation career, not solely because they hope to avoid paying for civilian flight training.
Can Military Pilots Become Airline Pilots Later?
Military flying experience can provide valuable preparation for a subsequent civilian aviation career.
However, military qualifications do not automatically convert into every civilian licence or rating without additional requirements.
The UK CAA operates a Military Aircrew Accreditation Scheme under which eligible military flight crew may receive specified credits towards civilian qualifications.
The amount of credit depends on the individual’s military qualifications and experience and the applicable licensing requirements.
Additional theoretical examinations, training, assessments or licensing action may still be necessary.
UK CAA – Military Aircrew Accreditation Scheme →
How to Protect Your Money When Paying a Flight School
One of the most important aspects of financing commercial pilot training is protecting the money you’ve committed.
Flight training organisations can face financial difficulties, just like businesses in other industries.
If a school becomes insolvent or stops operating before you complete your course, you may face disruption, additional costs and potentially the loss of prepaid training fees.
This risk exists whether you’re attending an integrated academy or completing modular training.
Does CAA Approval Protect Your Training Fees?
No. This is an important distinction.
The UK Civil Aviation Authority regulates the relevant safety and training standards of approved flight training organisations.
However, CAA approval does not guarantee that a flight school is financially secure.
The CAA explicitly explains that its approval process does not certify the financial health or stability of a training organisation.
Consequently, applicants should take their own precautions before paying substantial sums.
Ways to Reduce Your Financial Exposure
Before making a substantial payment, consider the following:
- Pay in stages: Investigate whether fees can be paid as training is delivered rather than entirely upfront.
- Review the contract: Understand the refund policy, cancellation terms and arrangements if the school cannot complete the course.
- Ask about protected funds: Establish whether any suitable escrow or other independently administered payment arrangements are available.
- Understand payment protection: Certain credit card payments may benefit from consumer protections, but the extent of protection depends on the transaction and applicable rules.
- Check the organisation: Investigate its trading history, financial arrangements and ability to deliver the advertised training.
- Speak with students: Ask current students about delays, unexpected costs and how the school handles problems.
- Clarify additional charges: Establish the cost of extra training, examination resits and other unforeseen requirements.
- Understand training-record arrangements: Ask how your records will be retained and transferred if you need to change training provider.
The aim is to limit the amount of money exposed to unnecessary risk at any one time.
Should You Pay the Full Course Fee Upfront?
Some training organisations offer discounts to students who pay a substantial amount of the course fee in advance.
Although these discounts may appear attractive, they should be assessed against the additional financial risk.
If a school cannot deliver the training you’ve already paid for, recovering unused fees may prove difficult.
Where possible, consider arrangements that link payments to actual training progress.
The CAA identifies staged payments, suitable escrow arrangements and paying for individual lessons as possible ways to reduce financial exposure.
The most appropriate arrangement will depend on the school, course structure and contract.
For more information, see the UK CAA’s Guidance on Choosing a Flight School and Protecting Your Investment.
What Happens If Your Flight School Closes?
If a flight training organisation ceases trading before you’ve completed your qualifications, you may need to arrange for another approved organisation to assess your previous training and establish what remains to be completed.
This can involve additional costs, scheduling difficulties and potential delays.
It’s also important to ensure that your training records can be recovered and appropriately verified.
The CAA advises students to consider the security and retention of training records because the authority does not necessarily hold individual training records for every student.
Before enrolling, ask how your training records are maintained and what arrangements would apply if you needed to transfer to another organisation.
How to Create a Realistic Commercial Pilot Training Budget
Before taking out a loan, using savings or committing to a training contract, we recommend creating a complete financial plan.
This should include more than the advertised training fees.
Your budget should reflect the actual cost of completing the qualifications, supporting yourself during training and meeting your financial obligations while looking for employment afterwards.
| Budget Category | What to Include |
|---|---|
| Training fees | The complete price of the intended professional training programme or individual modular courses. |
| Licensing and examinations | Examination fees, skill tests, medical assessments and licensing costs not included in the course. |
| Additional training | A contingency for extra flying hours, refresher training or examination resits. |
| Living expenses | Accommodation, food, travel, insurance and other personal costs during training. |
| Lost earnings | The income you may give up while attending a full-time course. |
| Borrowing costs | Interest, arrangement fees and any other financing charges. |
| Employment contingency | Living costs and financial obligations during a period without airline employment. |
| Post-training expenses | Potential relocation, currency, licensing, rating or other costs associated with pursuing employment. |
Don’t Forget the Cost of Not Working
One of the less obvious expenses associated with full-time integrated training is the income you may need to give up.
If you’re leaving an established career to attend a full-time course, consider not only the training fees but also the salary you’ll no longer receive.
For somebody with a mortgage, rent or other financial commitments, this can be a substantial consideration.
Modular training may allow you to continue earning during some stages, although intensive professional courses can still require time away from work.
Consequently, comparing the financial implications of integrated and modular training involves more than looking at their advertised prices.
Plan for the Possibility of Delayed Employment
Another important consideration is what happens after training.
Obtaining professional pilot qualifications does not automatically guarantee that you’ll secure an airline job immediately.
Recruitment opportunities can vary considerably depending on airline demand, economic conditions and the number of suitably qualified applicants.
You may need to continue working in another industry while applying for flying positions.
If you’ve borrowed a large amount of money, the repayments may still become due even if you haven’t secured professional flying employment.
Consider how you’ll manage your financial commitments in that situation before deciding to take on debt.
Ask Yourself These Questions Before Committing
- Can I afford the training without relying on an immediate airline job?
- Have I obtained a detailed written quotation showing the full expected cost?
- Do I have enough money available for unexpected training expenses?
- Can I support myself throughout the training period?
- How would I manage loan repayments if employment takes longer than expected?
- Would a modular training route reduce my financial exposure?
- Have I investigated fully funded programmes and suitable scholarships?
- Do I understand what happens if I cannot complete the training?
- Have I checked the training organisation’s approval and payment arrangements?
- Have I established that I meet the relevant Class 1 medical requirements?
If you cannot answer these questions confidently, it may be sensible to undertake further research before committing substantial funds.
Get Your Class 1 Medical Before Making a Major Financial Commitment
Before spending a substantial amount on professional flight training, one of the most important steps is to establish whether you meet the applicable medical requirements.
For the normal UK CAA and EASA professional licensing pathways, this involves obtaining a Class 1 medical certificate.
Medical requirements cover areas including vision, hearing, cardiovascular health and general medical fitness.
Some medical conditions require further investigation rather than resulting in automatic disqualification.
However, identifying a significant medical issue after paying for professional training can create considerable financial difficulties.
We therefore recommend arranging the relevant initial Class 1 medical assessment before entering into a major non-refundable training commitment.
For more information, see our Airline Pilot Medical Requirements Guide.
Which Funding Route Is Right for You?
Different funding arrangements may suit different applicants.
The following examples illustrate how your circumstances can influence the most appropriate approach.
Leaving School
If you’re leaving school without significant savings, fully funded airline programmes and suitable scholarships may be particularly worth exploring.
You might also consider gaining employment and building savings before committing to professional training.
Avoid assuming that substantial borrowing is the only way to begin an aviation career.
Changing Careers
If you’re already working, modular training may allow you to maintain your income while completing parts of the course.
This can reduce the need for borrowing and help you manage existing financial commitments.
However, remember to budget for periods of intensive training when working may not be practical.
Considering an Integrated Course
If you prefer a structured full-time programme, investigate the total course cost, payment arrangements and any finance required.
Compare different training organisations and consider whether the additional cost is justified for your circumstances.
Pay particular attention to the financial consequences of delays or not securing employment immediately.
A Practical Plan for Financing Your Pilot Training
If you’re still deciding how to fund your training, we’d suggest approaching the process in a structured way.
Step 1 – Establish Your Eligibility
Check the academic, medical and other entry requirements of your intended training route. Investigate the relevant Class 1 medical before making a substantial financial commitment.
Step 2 – Investigate Fully Funded Opportunities
Review airline cadet programmes, scholarship organisations and other opportunities that may reduce the amount of money you need to provide yourself.
Step 3 – Compare Integrated and Modular Training
Obtain detailed quotations and consider how the course structure affects both the direct training cost and your ability to continue working.
Step 4 – Calculate the Complete Cost
Include accommodation, examinations, additional flying, equipment, living expenses, borrowing costs and an appropriate contingency for delays.
Step 5 – Assess Your Financial Resources
Consider savings, income, family assistance and other potential funding sources. Establish whether any borrowing would remain affordable under less favourable circumstances.
Step 6 – Investigate the Training Organisation
Check the relevant regulatory approval, contractual arrangements, training capacity, payment structure and provisions for protecting prepaid fees.
Step 7 – Make a Decision Based on Financial Sustainability
Choose a route that provides appropriate training while remaining realistic about the financial commitment and the uncertainty surrounding future airline employment.
How to Finance Pilot Training – Frequently Asked Questions
How can I afford to become an airline pilot?
Potential options include fully funded airline cadet programmes, scholarships, personal savings, modular training completed alongside employment, family assistance and suitable borrowing arrangements.
The most appropriate option depends on your circumstances, eligibility and the financial risks you can reasonably accept.
Are there fully funded pilot training programmes in the UK?
Fully funded airline training opportunities do exist.
For example, British Airways and Jet2 both announced substantial fully funded cadet training programmes in 2026.
However, availability is limited, selection is competitive and application windows vary. Always check the airline’s official recruitment website for current opportunities.
Will an airline pay for my pilot training?
Some airlines offer fully or partially funded training programmes.
Others offer airline-linked cadet pathways that remain self-funded.
Always establish exactly which costs are covered, whether repayment obligations apply and what happens if the training is not completed successfully.
Can I get a student loan to become a pilot?
In England, ordinary government-backed higher education student finance does not generally cover standalone commercial pilot training.
Eligible academic elements of designated university aviation programmes may qualify for student finance, but practical flying costs are normally considered separately.
Applicants should confirm the current arrangements with the relevant university and student finance body.
Are there scholarships for aspiring airline pilots?
Several aviation organisations provide flying scholarships and bursaries.
For example, The Air League and the Honourable Company of Air Pilots offer various flying-related awards.
However, many scholarships support introductory flying, gliding or PPL training rather than covering the entire professional airline pilot qualification pathway.
Can I become a pilot without taking out a large loan?
It may be possible through a fully funded programme, scholarships, personal savings or a carefully planned modular training route.
However, the amount of money required depends on the qualifications, training organisation and individual circumstances.
Even modular training can represent a substantial financial commitment.
Is modular training cheaper than integrated training?
Modular training can be less expensive because students have greater flexibility over training providers, aircraft and the timing of different courses.
However, the total cost varies, and additional flying or delays can increase expenditure.
Both routes should be compared using complete, written quotations.
Can I work while completing pilot training?
Some stages of modular training can be completed alongside employment.
However, intensive professional courses may require substantial time away from work.
Integrated programmes are generally organised as full-time training and can be difficult to combine with regular employment.
Do banks offer loans specifically for pilot training?
The availability of specialist aviation training finance varies between lenders and over time.
Some applicants investigate personal loans, secured lending or other educational finance arrangements.
Borrowing approval depends on the lender’s criteria and the applicant’s financial circumstances. You should verify current products directly with authorised lenders rather than relying on outdated examples.
Do you need to own a property to obtain a pilot training loan?
Not every loan requires property security.
However, lenders may be unwilling to provide the full cost of an expensive professional training programme through unsecured lending alone.
Where property is used as security, the consequences of missed repayments can be serious.
Can my parents guarantee a pilot training loan?
Some lenders may accept suitable guarantors, subject to their lending criteria.
However, a guarantor can become legally responsible for repayments if the borrower fails to pay.
The financial obligations should be understood carefully, and independent advice may be appropriate.
Can loan repayments begin after I finish training?
Some financing arrangements may permit deferred repayments, but this depends on the lender and loan agreement.
Interest may continue to accumulate during a repayment holiday, increasing the total amount eventually owed.
Always ask for a clear explanation of the repayment schedule and total borrowing cost.
Should I borrow against my family’s home?
This involves a potentially substantial financial risk and should not be approached lightly.
If the loan is secured against a property and the repayments cannot be maintained, the property may ultimately be at risk.
Before entering such an arrangement, obtain appropriate independent financial and legal advice and consider whether repayments would remain affordable without an airline salary.
Will a flight school refund my money if I cannot finish training?
Refund arrangements depend on the contract, the reason for withdrawal and any applicable legal rights.
You should review the cancellation terms and establish how unused training fees are treated before paying.
Do not assume that all prepaid fees are automatically refundable.
Does CAA approval mean my training money is protected?
No. The CAA regulates the relevant safety and training standards but does not guarantee the financial stability of approved flight schools.
Students should investigate contractual protections, staged payments and other appropriate arrangements for reducing their financial exposure.
Can I become an airline pilot through the military?
Military flying careers can provide valuable training and experience.
However, the military is not simply an alternative civilian flight training provider. Applicants must meet military selection requirements and undertake the associated service commitments.
Military qualifications may provide credit towards civilian licences, but conversion is not necessarily automatic.
Does completing commercial pilot training guarantee an airline job?
No. Obtaining professional qualifications does not guarantee immediate employment.
Recruitment depends on airline demand, individual qualifications, assessment performance and other factors.
This is one of the main reasons to consider the financial risks carefully before borrowing substantial amounts.
Does FlightDeckFriend provide financial assistance for pilot training?
FlightDeckFriend does not provide pilot training scholarships, direct sponsorship or financial assistance.
However, our website provides information about training routes, funding opportunities and the considerations involved in pursuing a professional aviation career.
How Should You Finance Your Commercial Pilot Training?
There isn’t one funding method that is appropriate for every aspiring airline pilot.
For some applicants, a fully funded airline cadet programme may provide an opportunity to enter the profession without personally meeting the substantial training costs.
For others, modular training completed alongside employment may offer a more financially manageable approach.
Personal savings, suitable scholarships and family assistance can also contribute towards the cost of training.
Borrowing may be an option, but the associated interest, repayment obligations and potential exposure of family assets must be considered carefully.
The most important point is to make decisions based on realistic finances rather than relying on an anticipated future airline salary.
Professional flying can provide a rewarding career, but recruitment opportunities and career progression cannot be guaranteed.
Before committing substantial money, investigate your options, compare complete training costs, establish your medical eligibility and make sure you understand the financial consequences if circumstances change.
Continue Your Research Into Commercial Pilot Training
Financing your training is only one part of planning a career as an airline pilot.
You’ll also need to consider the qualifications required, the different training routes, the suitability of individual flight schools and your potential employment opportunities after graduation.
FlightDeckFriend provides a range of free guides to help aspiring pilots understand these subjects.
Flight Training Sponsorship
Explore airline-funded cadet programmes, sponsorship arrangements and other potential funding opportunities.
How Much Does Training Cost?
Understand the expenses associated with obtaining professional pilot qualifications.
Integrated vs Modular Training
Compare the main professional training routes, including their flexibility, timescales and financial implications.
Pilot Employment Prospects
Learn about finding your first airline job and the challenges newly qualified pilots may encounter.
Thinking About Becoming an Airline Pilot?
Our comprehensive Become a Pilot resources explain the qualifications, training routes, medical requirements and financial considerations involved in pursuing a professional flying career.
Whether you’re still at school, considering a career change or comparing professional training organisations, understanding the process can help you make informed decisions about your future.
Official Sources & Further Information
Airline sponsorship programmes, scholarships, borrowing arrangements and government funding rules can change. Always verify the current terms and eligibility requirements directly with the relevant organisation.
- UK CAA – Choosing a Flight School and Protecting Your Investment
- British Airways – 2026 Speedbird Pilot Academy Announcement
- Jet2 – 2026 Jet2FlightPath Announcement
- The Air League – Flying Scholarships
- The Honourable Company of Air Pilots – Scholarships
- Department for Education – Student Finance and Pilot Training
- MoneyHelper – Guarantor Loans
- MoneyHelper – Property-Secured Borrowing
Disclaimer: This article provides general educational information about financing commercial pilot training, primarily in the United Kingdom. It does not constitute regulated financial, lending, legal or investment advice. FlightDeckFriend does not provide loans, arrange credit or offer direct financial assistance for pilot training. Borrowing can involve significant risks, particularly where property or guarantors are involved. Training costs, airline sponsorship programmes, scholarships, lending criteria and government funding arrangements may change. Before entering into a financial agreement or making a substantial training payment, obtain appropriate independent advice and verify the relevant terms directly with the organisations concerned. Completion of professional pilot training does not guarantee airline employment.
Typical Day of a Short Haul Airline Pilot
A Short-Haul Airline Pilot’s Typical Day
Ever wondered what it would be like to walk in the shoes of a short haul airline pilot for the day? We take you through what a pilot does during a typical day at ‘work’.
Check-In
For short haul operations, the flight crew usually arrive in the ‘crew room’ approximately one hour before departure. Here they meet and introduce ourselves to the other crew members and sign in on the airline’s system to verify they have arrived on time for the duty and are acknowledging they are fit, well rested and up to date with all the latest revisions to company manuals and notices. The pilots will then download the flight plans, weather information and notices to airman (NOTAMS) for the flights they will be operating.
Crew carefully evaluate if the weather is suitable at the departure and destination airports, whilst also looking at airports around the destination in case the flight needs to divert. Weather conditions that require special attention include strong winds, low cloud, fog or thunderstorms. Any of these factors may require changes to the flight plan or an increase to the amount of fuel to be loaded. En-route weather is also reviewed to spot areas of potential turbulence or icing. This gives flight crew a good overview of the day and builds their ‘Situational Awareness’.
The fuel figure is decided on between the two pilots and passed this onto the dispatch team.
The crew will look to find out what stand the aircraft is parked on.
Joint Briefing
The pilots and cabin crew then get together to conduct a quick briefing. This is where formal introductions between the crew take place. You may have flown with some or all of the crew members many times before and therefore be well acquainted but at some larger airlines, you may not have flown with or met any of the other crew before.
During the joint briefing, the Captain or First Officer will double-check that the Cabin Crew are well rested and will highlight a few points which are important to the Cabin Crew such as the flight times and potential areas of turbulence.
Pilot vs Co-Pilot
There is a common misconception regarding who does what on the flight deck. There is a Captain and a First Officer (or called a Second Officer depending on experience) which are often referred to as the Pilot and Co-Pilot. Whilst the Captain has overall responsibility for the decisions and ultimately the passengers and aircraft, most of the duties are split evenly with the co-pilot doing just as much flying as the pilot.
In the briefing room, the pilots would usually decide who is going to do the flying for each flight at the start of the day. For example, if they are flying 4 flights that day, the Captain may choose to fly the first and last flight, whilst the First Officer flies the middle two.
Head to the Aircraft
As with all passengers, all the crew have to pass through a security check at some point before arriving at the aircraft.
The pilots and cabin crew will then head to the aircraft, with the aim to be onboard about 30 – 35 minutes before the departure time. It’s worth noting that the departure time is the time that the aircraft’s parking brake is released to commence push back from the stand. Many people are under the impression that the scheduled departure time is when the aircraft gets airborne, but this is incorrect.
One pilot will do the “walk around” to check the outside of the aircraft. The walk around serves to check that there is no obvious damage or issues with the exterior of the aircraft.
Technical Log
The Captain will also check the aircraft’s technical log to ensure the aircraft is fully serviceable, or identify any defects. An aircraft defect doesn’t necessarily mean you can’t depart as it depends on how critical that system is and what redundancy is in place. There are complex documents which provide pilots with high specific guidance as to what can and can’t be defective. For example, if a windscreen wiper wasn’t working, the aircraft could still depart, but couldn’t land in thick fog.
Flight Deck Setup
Whilst one crew member is completing the walk around, other crew member starts to ready the flight deck for departure. This includes running system checks, configuring the aircraft systems, inputting the route for the flight into the Flight Management Computer and checking the take-off performance. The pilot flying will also plan how they intend to fly the Standard Instrument Departure (SID).
Take-off Performance
The take-off performance varies on a daily basis and is a safety critical function. The pilots need to calculate various take-off speeds such as the speed they initiate the rotation of the aircraft and the minimum speed to maintain if an engine fails during or just after take-off. These speeds depend on runway length, aircraft weight, temperature and pressure. The take-off performance has to be double-checked very carefully by both crew members.
Briefing
Once the walk around is complete and the flight deck initially set up, the crew will conduct a pre-departure briefing. This covers a range of points such as the initial taxi and departure routing, potential threats or errors that could occur (for example heavy rain showers that may be present on the climb out), high terrain, as well as looking at contingency plans should an emergency situation occur. The passengers are usually boarding whilst this is taking place.
Once all the passengers and their bags are onboard and the correct amount of fuel has been loaded, the dispatcher will hand over the final paperwork confirming how many people are onboard and the final weight of the aircraft for take-off. At this point the Pilot Flying will call for a pre-departure checklist (the names differ between aircraft types).
Doors Closed
Once the main doors are closed the Senior Cabin Crew member will confirm to the pilots that the doors are closed and number of passengers onboard. Another very quick mini briefing will be given to the Cabin Crew member to reiterate the expected taxi time (this gives the Cabin Crew an idea of how long they have to conduct their safety briefing), expected flight time, anticipated turbulence and any other important information.
One of the pilots will then complete a PA to the passengers. During this time, the ground crew outside remove the steps, loading machinery etc. and complete a final walk around as a final check.
Pushback and Start
The pilots will then liaise with the ground pushback team to make sure that the tug is connected, and they are ready to push back the aircraft. The pilots then speak to ATC to request to push back and engine start. Assuming permission is given, the pilots reconfigure some of the aircraft systems and then complete a ‘before start checklist’.
The pushback then commences and the engines are started, usually the right engine first then the left. The pilots carefully monitor the engine indications and this is supported by the ground crew visually observing the engine start; they would report any excess smoke, noise or anything unusual.
Once the engines have been successfully started, the pilots tell the ground crew to disconnect from the aircraft. Some of the aircraft’s systems, such as the flight controls are then checked to make sure there are no technical issues. The after-start checklist is then completed.
Taxy
The pilots will then request permission to taxy to the runway from ATC.
Taxiing the aircraft is one of the most critical phases of flight and therefore both crew members will be concentrating on maintaining the correct taxi routing whilst looking out for other aircraft and ground traffic. Airports can be extremely busy which is why it is so important to keep a good look out. During the taxy phase, the crew will run a number of checklists to ensure the aircraft is correctly configured and setup for departure.
Take-off
When cleared to line up on the runway, the pilots will double-check to make sure both the runway and final approach is clear. The flight crew turn on the strobe and landing lights and send a signal to the Cabin Crew that the take-off is about to start (this is usually either signalled by a few ‘ding-dongs’ or the seat-belt sign quickly being turned off and then on again.
Once lined up on the runway, and cleared to take-off by air traffic control, the pilot flying for that sector advances the thrust leavers and sets take-off thrust. As the aircraft accelerates down the runway, the Pilot Flying (PF) controls the aircraft direction with the rudder pedals. The PM is verifying that the take-off thrust has been set correctly, checking the aircraft’s speed monitoring any abnormalities or failures of the aircraft systems.
At the correct calculated speed, the pilot flying carefully pulls back on the control column to “rotate” the aircraft and allowing it to climb away. Pulling back to quickly can result in the tail coming into contact with the ground so using the correct technique is very important.
Climb Out
Once safely climbing away and a positive rate of climb is observed, the landing gear is raised. The pilots will usually have discussed at what point they intend to engage the autopilot on the departure which could be anywhere from about 1,0000 to 20,000ft depending on the airspace, terrain and weather. Engaging the autopilot above around 2,000ft should really have been discussed as part of the briefing.
Even when the autopilot is activated, the pilot’s workload at this stage of flight is still quite intense. The crew are managing the aircraft’s configuration, speed, altitude and heading through manipulating the autopilot controls whilst communicating with air traffic control.
Flap Retraction
At around 1,000ft (although it can vary), the aircraft’s nose is slightly lowered and power reduced from take-off power to climb power. The aircraft continues to accelerate which allows the flaps on the wing to be retracted stage by stage.
Once the flaps are up, the crew complete the after-take-off checklist and continue climbing the aircraft towards cruising altitude. During the climb, various checks are completed and certain systems may need to be reconfigured depending on aircraft type.
The crew will be making initial fuel checks and verifying performance considerations like the maximum altitude the aircraft could climb to depending on the weight and temperature.
Once it is safe to do so the pilots will indicate to the Cabin Crew that it is safe to move around the cabin and will also turn off the fasten seat belt sign at an appropriate point.
Cruise
Having had approximately one and a half hours of a very intense workload, the pace and intensity of the operation starts to reduce. Once established in the climb and throughout the cruise, the pilots are monitoring the aircraft’s systems, navigating the aircraft, communicating with air traffic control, carrying out fuel checks and getting the weather for airports along the flight path and destination in case an en-route diversion is required. In the cruise, the pilots normally get the chance to have a meal, a cup of coffee and a chat with our colleagues, depending on how long the flight is.
Most airlines have what is referred to as a “sterile flight deck”. This means the crew should not talk about anything that is not related to the operation of the aircraft below around 20,000ft as their focus should be exclusively on the operation.
Descent
Around half an hour before the descent commences, the crew brief for the descent, approach, landing and taxy in at the destination airport. This requires a review of what autopilots modes will be used to manage the descent, the expected profile, configuration and landing performance.
A PA will then usually be given to the passengers with an update on the flight progress and expected landing time.
Approach
The approach phase is one of the busiest phases of flight. The pilots are carefully managing the ‘energy’ of the aircraft ensuring that the correct rate of descent is being flown at the correct speed. The speed of the aircraft will typically need to be reduced from over 400 mph to around 150 mph whilst reducing the altitude from around 36,000ft to 0ft. This is not always straight forward and needs to be carefully actioned and monitored.
Final Approach
As the aircraft approaches its destination, the flaps are gradually extended to help slow the aircraft down to its landing speed. With the help of ATC, the pilots steer the aircraft towards the final approach and intercept the ILS, usually around 10 – 15 miles from the runway.
At about 5 miles from landing the pilots select the landing gear down, final flap setting and establish the landing speed. They also complete the landing checklist.
Landing
The autopilot is disconnected at around 1,000ft, although it can be taken out much earlier on the approach, or left in until a later point.
At about 30 – 50ft, the aircraft’s nose is raised very slightly to reduce the rate of descent, allowing the aircraft to touchdown on the runway. In calm conditions this might be relatively straight forward but in windy and turbulent conditions, it requires considerable skills and hand to eye co-ordination.
A good landing is considered to be one that is on the centreline, within the touchdown zone and at the correct speed. A smooth landing isn’t necessarily a good one if it doesn’t meet the above criteria. Equally, a firm landing is recommended on some aircraft types if the runway is wet, or it’s windy.
Taxy In
As the aircraft leaves the runway, it is again reconfigured and the after landing checklist is complete. The taxy in remains a very critical phase of flight and requires a high level of concentration.
Once the aircraft has come to a stop on the parking stand, the engines are shut down and the shutdown checklist is completed.
The doors are opened and the passengers start to disembark.
Turnaround
The turnaround then starts where the aircraft is prepared for the next flight. The turnaround can be as quick 25 minutes at some airlines. If you are flying 4 flights in a day, which is quite typical at short-haul airlines, you will be doing one initial setup and 3 turnarounds every day as well as doing just about everything spoken about above (after initial check-in) 4 times.
Conclusion
This article assumes that everything goes without a hiccup and there are no issues. However, the reality is that there is very rarely a ‘standard day out’ which runs seamlessly. There is almost always some sort of technical issue, poor weather, passenger issues, ATC delays etc. (or a combination of all them), and they all have to be managed appropriately by the flight crew.
The check-in, planning, aircraft setup, aircraft operation and flight management described has been toned down significantly to help a person with little or no knowledge about commercial aviation understand what a pilot does on a daily basis. However, the reality is that all of these areas are far more complex than this brief overview describes. It takes years of training and experience to become fully proficient at the job.
Anyone that tells you that pilots don’t work hard or the job is easy don’t really understand what the job entails.
If you found this interesting, check out our article on the Day in the Life of a Long Haul Pilot.
How Much do Airline Pilots Get Paid?
How Much Do Airline Pilots Get Paid?
First Officers (or co-pilots) can earn from £25,000 – £150,000 a year whilst the yearly salary for Captains (pilots) can range from £100,000 to about £300,000. Pilot pay varies significantly between airlines and countries with factors such as the type of operation, aircraft flown and experience level all affecting pilot pay. Generally speaking, the bigger the aircraft, the further the aircraft is flown and the longer a pilot has been with that airline, the more the airline pilot gets paid. Many airlines have a yearly increase in salary that reflects the pilot’s length of service or seniority.
The Guardian (a UK newspaper) stated that in 2016, airline pilots were the 4th highest paid profession in the United Kingdom earning an average of £86,915 ($120,000 / €95,000), before tax a year.
The Roles of Pilots
Airline pilots are split into two roles; the Captain and First Officer. The Captain is in charge of the aircraft and ultimately responsible for the safety of the passengers, crew and aircraft. The First Officer assists the Captain in the safe operation of the flight with (on most days), the flying duties being split evenly, taking it in turns to fly the aircraft. The First Officers roles can be further split into a junior First Officer, Second Officer or Senior First Officer. Training Captains and First Officers (pilots who train other pilots) would expect to earn an extra increment on top of those stated below.
Pay Scales
The figures below are meant to be used as a general guide and there will always be exceptions above or below the figures. Each airline has its own pilot pay scales which will vary with the type of operation and aircraft type. The taxation applicable to each country will significantly alter the take home pay (net) for a given gross salary. Please note the Dollars and Euros figures given are based on a UK pound sterling conversion. Salaries are updated to reflect conditions in 2021.
Long Haul Pilot Pay
Long Haul Captain (Maximum)
Long Haul Captain (Minimum)
Long Haul First Officer (Maximum)
Long Haul First Officer (Minimum)
£250,000 ($350,000 / €280,000)
£80,000 ($124,000 / €113,000)
£120,000 ($187,000 / €170,000)
£50,000 ($80,000 / €65,000)
Long-haul aircraft types would include Boeing 747, 767, 777, 787, Airbus 330, 340, 350 380. Airline examples might include, Virgin Atlantic, Cathay Pacific, Emirates, American Airlines, Delta, Qantas, Qatar Airways, Lufthansa, KLM, Air France Turkish Airline’s, Iberia.
Short Haul Pilot Pay
Short Haul Captain (Maximum)
Short Haul Captain (Minimum)
Short Haul First Officer (Maximum)
Short Haul First Officer (Minimum)
£130,000 ($205,000 / €185,000)
£70,000 ($109,000 / €100,000)
£70,000 ($109,000 / €100,000)
£35,000 ($55,000 / €50,000)
Short to medium haul aircraft types would include Boeing 737, 757, Airbus 319 / 320 / 321, Embraer 190/195.
Regional Pilot Pay
Regional Captain (Maximum)
Regional Captain (Minimum)
Regional First Officer (Maximum)
Regional First Officer (Minimum)
£80,000 ($120,000 / €100,000)
£40,000 ($63,000 / €57,000)
£40,000 ($63,000 / €57,000)
£20,000 ($32,000 / €29,000)
Regional aircraft types would include Jetstream 41, Saab 2000, Dash 8, ATR42/72, Fokker 50, Embraer 145. Example airlines might include Eastern Airways, Aer Arran, Flybe, Darwin Airways or Logan Air.
Charter Airline Pilot Pay
Charter airlines operate both long and short haul. As such pay will vary between the short and long haul salary brackets.
Pilot Colour Vision Requirements
Can I be Colour Blind and still be a Pilot?
Yes, you can potentially be colour blind and become an airline pilot, however, it depends on the severity and what colours you can or can’t recognise.
Approximately 1 in 12 men are colour blind and around 1 in 200 women. Colour blindness is usually genetic, but it can be acquired with age or illness. Many people don’t realise that they’re colour blind until they go for their initial pilot medical assessment.
Your colour vision will be assessed at your initial Class One Medical assessment (a requirement to be a commercial airline pilot) through the Ishihara test. You will be presented with 24 plates and you must accurately state which number is visible within each plate. They are presented in a random order. If you get the first 15 right in a row, you are considered to have passed the test.
This test determines whether you have the colour vision requirements to operate a commercial aircraft. If you fail the Ishihara test, you will be given further testing to see if you are colour safe. The details of this can be found on the UK CAA website.
Up until 2013, a pilot was automatically rejected for a Class One Medical if they are colour blind. Due to advances in colour vision testing, it is possible to accurately assess the level of colour-blindness an individual has. Providing the meet the minimum standard of colour vision, even if you are partially colour blind, it is possible to be issued a Class One Medical.
Have a go at the colour-blind test below to see if you would pass the test. In all but 3 of the circles, you should be able to identify the number embedded within the circle without a problem. If you can’t identify the number, this is likely to be an indication that you are colour blind. To confirm you have seen the correct number, place your cursor over the white circle with a number in to reveal the hidden number.
Colour Vision Test
Test your colour vision…
12
8
6
29
57
5
3
15
74
5
6
57
5
42
45
Nothing!
Nothing!
Nothing!
12
29
15
5
45
Nothing!
Nothing!
How Much Does It Cost to Train as a Pilot?
How much does it cost to train as a pilot?
As of 2022, the cost of commercial pilot training is between £/€ 40,000 to £/€ 150,000. The cost depends on which flight school you train at and the type of training you do (there’s more than one training route to becoming an airline pilot). Unfortunately, the cost of flight training is very expensive and can be a barrier to some people becoming a pilot.
At present, the majority of airline’s currently require the student to pay the cost of training and this seems unlikely to change for the foreseeable future given the number of pilots out of work who are seeking reemployment as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic.
- A full time commercial flight training course (known as an integrated course) completed at a European flight school will cost upwards of £80,000 to around £130,000.
- Part time flight training, or a course completed at a various flight training organisations (known as modular training) will start at around £40,000 rising up to approxmately £60,000.
Type Rating Costs
You also need to factor in that many aircraft require the newly hired employee to pay for his or her Type Rating. This is the qualification needed by a pilot to operate a specific aircraft type such as a Boeing 737. This can cost between £15,000 to £35,000 depending on who provides the training.
To see what options there are to help you fund your flight training, you can visit our ‘Financing Flight Training‘ page for more information.
Integrated Flight Training
Integrated flight training refers to a full time commercial flight training course, where all of the training is completed with the same dedicated flight training organisation. Students who complete integrated flight training can complete the course with fewer flight hours than that required if completing it through the modular route. A full time integrated course usually takes between about 14 – 18 months, however it is dependant on the weather and satisfactory student progress at each stage.
Integrated Training Advantages:
- It’s the quickest way to complete your flight training (14-18 months)
- High quality, intensive training
- Many airlines have traditionally preferred students from integrated training courses
- Many integrated flight schools have good relationships with airlines, and have a recommendation system
- Some airlines run mentored training programs which provide a fast track route into a job after completing your training
- Fewer flight hours are required to obtain your CPL/IR
Modular Flight Training
Modular flight training refers to completing your flight training one step at a time. You can do the training at your own pace, as your spare time and finances allow. It’s usually cheaper than integrated training and gives you maximum flexibility.
You would normally complete your modular flight training in the following order:
- Private Pilots Licence (PPL)
- Airline Transport Pilots Licence (ATPL) Theoretical Examinations
- Hour Building
- Commercial Pilots Licence
- Instrument Rating
- Multi Crew Cooperation Course
Modular Flight Training Advantages
- It’s the cheapest way to get your commercial pilots licence
- You can pay for it as you go, no large fees are required upfront
- You can complete it in your own time, alongside a full time job
For more information on the Pro’s and Con’s of each training route, visit our Integrated vs Modular page.
Pilot Job Prospects
Will I get a Job After Completing Commercial Flight Training?
Whether you will get a flying job after completing your commercial flight training depends on the state of the industry, your attitude, aptitude and training record. It’s understandable that people want reassurance about their future prospects given the amount of money they are investing in their flight training, but there are never any guarantees.
For a few years up until March 2020, the pilot job market was particularly buoyant for both freshly graduated and experienced pilots. During this time, you could well have walked straight into a decent First Officer job but as always, this won’t have been the case for everyone. Both aircraft manufactures and airlines across the globe were predicting a substantial global pilot shortage for the next twenty years although it was common to hear this rebuffed by pilots who had gained their frozen ATPL years ago, but were still looking for their first flying position.
The Effect of Covid-19
Unfortunately, from early 2020, Covid-19 has been cataclysmic for most airlines across the world with huge reductions in air transport capacity requirements. As a result, significant airline failures have occurred such as Norwegian Long Haul, Flybe, Virgin Australia, CityJet and AtlasGlobal with more likely as 2021 progresses. Airline’s that have survived are undergoing significant restructuring and, in some cases, retiring entire fleets years earlier than planned such as the British Airways and Qantas B747 fleets, the Air France A380 and the Delta B777 fleet.
This has resulted in significant redundancies across the industry, dumping thousands of experienced pilots into the job market. With no bounce back in sight, potentially, until a vaccine is produced and distributed, this undoubtedly specifically impacts the job prospects of those seeking their first flying job.
Holding a Frozen ATPL Does Not Guarantee You a Flying Job
The reality is that holding a frozen ATPL doesn’t mean you are automatically entitled to a job with a commercial airline, even if they need pilots. They want the right person for the job not just a licence holder. Reputable airlines would rightly rather recruit no-one than a person with a license but with the wrong attitude and aptitude.
Getting to the point of holding a frozen ATPL, passing the theory exams, flight skills tests and multi crew co-operation course, isn’t easy, but it is something that many people can achieve if they invest enough time and money into it. Whilst many complete the training to a high standard, the end product isn’t always a well-rounded, commercially minded, enthusiastic, potential First Officer. To be successful after being issued your licence, you need to understand exactly what sort of person the airline is looking for in their pilots and this isn’t just being able to operate an aircraft to instrument rating standards, it’s much, much more.
Airline Assessments
Some people have all the desirable criteria, but just don’t perform well at airline assessments or interviews. The good news is that this is something that can be improved upon and there are many companies out there who will help you improve (FlightDeckFriend.com is one of them!). You will have invested tens of thousands of pounds in your flight training; spending a few hundred pounds more could significantly enhance your job prospects. The big airlines will only interview once for a recruitment campaign so don’t wait for the rejection email to come through before deciding to invest a bit more in a career that will hopefully last you a lifetime. The time to do it is before your interview.
Other prospective candidates struggle to get invited to the initial airline selection. Again, there could be an element of luck involved (your application getting read by the right person at the right time) but there are steps you can take to significantly improve your chances of being invited to an assessment, and this bit is really the hardest part. Every year we receive hundreds of unsolicited CVs and Covering Letters from people asking to join ‘our airline’, and we also review lots of documents for people looking to apply to the airlines.
Quality of Application Documents
I can tell you that whilst we do see some excellent applications, we do regularly see very poor CVs and Covering Letters which I expect most companies would not even consider – I wouldn’t have done when I was a recruiter. You can see straight away that no thought has gone into the application, in some cases they don’t even bother to mention the company by name, let alone highlight why they want to work for the company in any specific terms.
It’s absolutely vital that each application is tailored to the airline you are applying to. Yes, it’s a bit more work but you’ve just spent the last year or so training to get to this point so the least you can do is spend a few more minutes on each application to ensure its specific to the airline you are applying to. Writing “I would be proud to work for your esteemed company” makes it pretty clear that you haven’t put much thought into the application, and have likely sent the same Cover Letter to every airline you’ve applied to.
Attitude & Aptitude
The final reason some struggle to gain employment is that some people have the wrong attitude and aptitude. Commercial airlines are looking for a particular person and if you don’t fall into their “specification”, many would rather slow down their expansion or cancel flights than recruit someone who they don’t deem suitable.
So, what are they looking for? Well these are a few things you might not have considered.
Someone who is commercially minded. Basically, someone who is going to be actively considering the needs of the airline and its passengers when making decisions (after putting safety first of course). You aren’t always taught this at flight school!
A team player. How well do you interact with others? You need to work with many, many people in a typical day at work and the airline needs someone who can do this effectively. How would you interact with the Captain and Cabin Crew? Are you likely to be overbearing or too timid? They want someone in the middle.
What leadership qualities do you have? The airline wants to recruit future Captains, not career First Officers.
How’s your customer service? It might not be the first thing that comes to mind when you think about what it takes to operate a commercial aircraft, but airlines are placing more and more emphasis on their pilot’s interaction with customers in the same of customer service.
Conclusion
You must always appreciate, that a commercial pilot’s licence isn’t an entitlement to a job with an airline, it’s a gateway. Try to gain the skills they are looking for ensuring you have the right attitude for the job.
We offer our own CV & Cover Letter Tailoring Services where you can have your CV reviewed for FREE by our recruitment specialist. Our friends at Aviation Job Search also offer a free guide on preparing your CV.
Interview a Pilot – For School Projects
School Interview Questions For Pilots
At FlightDeckFriend.com, we receive a lot of requests for interviews with our pilots for school projects. Whilst we are very happy to be contacted to complete such interviews (over email correspondence) we have provided the questions and answers for questions we regularly receive.
Tell me a bit about yourself…
I’m a pilot operating for a well known UK airline. I’ve operated as a First Officer (co-pilot), Captain and Training Captain (a Captain who instructs and supports other pilots). I’ve also flown both Short Haul and Long Haul operations.
How did you get to become a pilot?
I always wanted to be a pilot. An aeroplane was one of the first things I could draw! After going to college and Sixth Form, I went to University and studied Aviation Technology with Pilot Studies. I then completed my commercial flight training before going onto join a low cost airline. I then joined a legacy carrier. I’ve been with my current airline for around 7 years.
How much do you earn?
Pilots wages vary significantly depending on rank, seniority within the company and type of airline. First Officers at an established airline flying a commercial jet can typically expect to earn approximately £40,000 – £120,000 whilst Captains will get between £90,000 – £250,000.
How many hours do you work a day / week?
It varies every day. Some days 2 hours, others 16. Some weeks 20 hours, other weeks over 50 hours. We have strict limits on the amount of hours we can fly – we can’t exceed 900 flight hours a year. This doesn’t include “duty” time such as preflight and post flight paperwork.
Do you get holidays?
Yes, about 6 blocks of between 9 – 14 days off a year. We also get the use of staff travel offering discounted flights and hotels.
Do you have to be particularly skilled?
Yes, but they are skills you can work to acquire. When airlines recruit pilots, they are looking for future Captains. Therefore, they want people who can demonstrate good leadership, teamwork, decision making and communication skills. You’ll also need to have a good standard of Maths, Science and English.
What key skills are required for the job?
Team work, communication, prioritisation, leadership and decision making are a few of they key attributes. A good grasp of Maths and Physics helps.
What training is required?
You need to pass 14 theoretical examinations and complete roughly 150 hours of flight training, passing multiple flight tests before you can apply to become a commercial pilot. You are then training on a specific commercial aircraft before going on to fly passengers. The process usually takes approximately 1 and a half to 2 years.
What subjects should I choose at school?
I would recommend choosing Science and Maths based subjects. Specific subjects that would be useful are Maths, Physics, English, Chemistry, Biology, Geography and IT. However, there is no specific requirement; you can become a pilot with good grades in any subjects you like as long as you have the right skills and attitude.
What do you like most about your job?
The daily variety and challenges that every flight brings. Every flight is different, whether it be the passengers, colleagues, aircraft, weather or destination. No day is ever the same and I wouldn’t it to be?
It’s also a great privilege to travel to far flung destinations across the globe. I’m lucky enough to fly an aircraft that goes anywhere from Australia to South America so I really do get to see the World.
What do you least like about your job?
Getting up at 3am! But at least your day is normally finished by about midday. Flying through the night can also be difficult, but we usually get a bit more time at home compared to a lot of jobs to recover from the nights out of bed.
What is your favourite destination?
The approach into London City airport is absolutely spectacular, especially when landing on the easterly runway. You fly at 2,000ft above central London, something few people get to experience.
Can I be an Airline Pilot if I have Diabetes?
Can I Become an Airline Pilot if I’m Diabetic?
Yes, it is possible to become an airline pilot in certain countries if you have either Type 1 or Type 2 diabetes, with certain restrictions. Currently, this includes the UK and Ireland.
The guidance on this page is relevant for UK CAA Class One Medicals. For information regarding other countries, you will need to check with your regulatory authority.
In the UK, the CAA can certify you as fit to hold a Class One Medical (which is required to fly a commercial airliner) depending on your ability to control your blood sugar levels. This applies to both individuals who require insulin to control their blood sugar and those who are able to control it purely through diet alone.
The CAA have produced a guide to medical certification with diabetes, which can be found here.
If you are certified with a Class One Medical, it will be with an Operational Multi-Pilot Limitation (OML) restriction. With such a restriction, you will only be able to fly as multi-pilot crew where the other pilots is below the age of 60 and does not also hold an OML.
As part of the approval, the CAA set out requirements to regularly check blood sugar levels before and during flight. They also specify that your condition needs to be reviewed every six months.
Typical Day of a Long Haul Pilot
A Typical Day as a Long Haul Pilot
This is one of our pilots typical day at ‘the office’. A long haul flight from London Heathrow to Las Vegas on a Boeing 747-400. It represents a typical day for a long haul pilot.
Day before Departure
So the day before departure I check the weather just to confirm it’s boiling hot and that I will be requiring an array of shorts and flip flops! I pack my suitcase (this trip is 6 days long), check any notices that have been issued in my week off, ensure all my apps are up to date on my iPad and the iPad is fully charged along with my battery pack (Our mature jumbo jets do not have power available in the flight deck).
As I’m packing my bags I try not to appear too happy to be going to Vegas for 6 days, the wife picks up on this and she finds it especially annoying if I whistle in a jolly way as I’m packing the sun tan lotion, so I have learnt to avoid whistling until I’m in the car on my own driving to work!
Report / Check-in
Report time (the time I have to be ready at the briefing room) is 10:45. This means I will have to be in the staff car park by 10:00 to catch the bus to the terminal, check in my bags and ensure I can take care of any admin housekeeping before proceeding to the briefing area. Just as I’m on the bus I get a text message from a flight crew colleague on short haul (we always have a bit of long haul vs short haul banter – poor guys!) as his brother and wife are on our flight and he wanted us to try and ensure they get on (they are on standby).
We are lucky on the Jumbo as we have at least 6 spare cabin crew jump seats we can use for staff passengers, on some flights (depending on the length and time of flight) we get a club world seat allocated to the flight deck for rest if we choose not to use our bunk beds in the flight deck.
Crew Report
After checking in my bag I head to our Crew Report Centre which is a huge area with about 12 briefing rooms, offices, managers, currency exchange, coffee shops, luggage stores and our own dedicated security checkpoint. I check in on the computer terminals 15 mins early, check any notices (by checking in I’m confirming I have a valid licence, medical and am up to date with all new notices from the company).
We have been assigned briefing room number 1 today and the cabin crew (14 today) are all inside the room briefing.
Meeting the Crew
I meet up with the other 2 pilots (we have 3 due to the length of the flight and so we can share rest) and after the pleasantries are out of the way we decide who is going to operate the 2 sectors (one flight there and one back). So one pilot will not operate the controls for take off and landing during this trip.
Who is going to fly?
This decision will first of all be based on currency and by that I mean every pilot has to do one takeoff and landing in a month (in my company it is 35 days). Due to annual leave, sickness or other reasons it could be that a pilot needs to do the flight to maintain his/her currency.
The Captain will be sat at the controls for both flights during take off and landing, the 2 Senior First Officers will rotate, one will be rostered to be the operating pilot outbound and the other will be the ‘heavy pilot’. This will normally swap round for the inbound flight.
‘Heavy’ Pilot
We call it heavy not because first officers tend to be overweight but because we are operating with a ‘heavy’ crew, a crew composition that is higher than required to operate the aircraft.
On ultra long flights (over 12 hours each way) we have 4 pilots. So we decide that I will operate the flight outbound as pilot flying. This means although I am not the Captain, the Captain will delegate most of the decisions to me, I will conduct the take off and landing and lead all the briefings.
A Full Flight
The flight today is full, which is no surprise and we do have staff on standby trying to get on. The first thing we do is print off the paperwork and check on our trip report that there are no company messages specific to our flight. Examples of these might be security messages (recommendations not to leave the hotel), portable water fill levels (the water that comes out the taps – on shorter flights we do not fill it up to capacity due to the extra weight as not all the water will be required).
Crew Room Briefing
We then move onto the briefing, looking at the significant weather charts across our whole route which would highlight any issues, we look at departure, destination and alternate airports weather and notams in detail, we look at en-route alternates, en-route airspace notams and sigmets, we perform a check to ensure we will not be too heavy to land at the destination and alternate airport.
A look at LAS
We check to ensure all of us have watched the video presentation for Las Vegas. The airport is categorised by my company as Category B which effectively means there are various challenges in operating into the airport.
Today, the weather is very hot, forecast is 40 degrees, Las Vegas has some interesting non-precision approaches and is surrounded by high terrain as well as being 2,500ft above sea level. Today, we also have thunderstorms and forecast severe turbulence en-route.
What do we brief?
With the briefing we are effectively looking to see if we can depart out of the departure airport, operate into the destination and alternate airports taking into account the weather and notams. Once the answer is yes, we then need to decide on how much fuel to take. Do we need any extra over and above the flight plan minimum requirement? Extra fuel costs a lot of money, for every extra 1,000kgs of fuel we take we use about 1/3 of it just to carry it!
We have a flight plan that is very accurate and details exactly how much fuel we need. Minimum fuel for this flight is 114,200kgs of fuel – a lot!!! The Jumbo can actually hold 173,000kgs of fuel which is actually the weight of approx 2, maybe 3 fully loaded medium size aircraft and that’s just our fuel load. Our take off weight today will be around 340,000kgs.
Cabin Crew Briefing
Once the briefing is complete we enter the briefing room (our station with a computer and a printer is just outside) introduce ourselves to the cabin crew and we brief them on the flight details and we would normally conduct a joint briefing where we would talk about a particular issue that is relevant on our flight or has occurred recently.
This includes, for example, what actions are required in the event of a toilet fire, how would the communication work and then we would detail what our actions and thought processes would be in the flight deck especially on the subject of a diversion and how long that may take if we are mid-Atlantic.
Jump Seats
We confer with the cabin crew regarding the use of cabin crew jump seats to allow extra staff passengers to travel. Today, we decide on allowing all the spare ones to be occupied which is 6. We have 2 upstairs on the upper deck, 2 at door 2 right and 2 at door 4 right. Once out of the briefing room we decide what order (if any) we would like staff to be on loaded into the jump seats, this is always the Captains authority.
We call flight management and tell them this information so they can start planning to issue jump seat boarding cards to allow some of our staff colleagues on the flight.
Security
After this we proceed to security and go through as a whole crew together. Our flight today operates from Terminal 3 so we have to catch a bus across to the aircraft. The company stipulate timings for everything to try to ensure an on time departure so we have to be at the bus at a certain time and the cabin crew have to be ready to board at a certain time.
On the bus we have chance to chat to the crew about everyone’s plans for the trip, unfortunately for the cabin crew they only get a 4 day trip which is still 2 nights, they are planning on a bit of socialising and sunbathing and some are visiting the outlets for shopping.
At The Aircraft
Once on the aircraft we liaise with the TRM (turnaround manager) on any issues there may be, the cabin crew complete their checks and we complete ours. The PF (pilot flying – me) will normally enter the data into the FMC, PNF/PM (pilot not flying – the captain today) will perform the setups on all the panels, calculate take-off performance through our ACARS system along with the ATIS (the latest weather information for Heathrow detailing runway in use).
The heavy pilot completes the external check of the aircraft as well as our cockpit security checks including our toilet and bunk rest area which are all enclosed in the flight deck.
Departure Time Management
Time management is crucial here, typically we will only be on the aircraft 40-45 mins before departure so there is a fair amount to do and we normally agree a time we would start briefing, the briefing normally takes around 15 minutes including what we call the critical data entry procedure which is where we enter all the performance in terms of take off thrust setting, speeds, clearance and setting up the Mode Control Panel into our Flight Management Computers.
Getting a long haul flight ready for departure is literally an event. There are so many people and processes involved and you only need one process to fail or the smallest issue to arise and the flight will go late, this is compounded by capacity issues at Heathrow whereby it is quite usual to close the doors on time and ask for push and start only to be told we have a start up delay due to congestion.
Pre-departure Briefing
The briefing focuses on identifying threats and talking about how we can avoid, trap and mitigate them, it is another opportunity to go over any recall / memory items and revise which pilot does what. The briefing is very important as an effective briefing involves everyone and resolves any ambiguity.
Threat Management
If I have spoken about various threats and what I will do to avoid them and one of the threats actually occurs then everyone knows what the other person has said they will do and if they don’t do it then they can verbalise it straight away without hesitation.
There is no time wasted with one pilot thinking ‘I wonder if he is going to do that, or ask for this’. Although we operate strictly to our company SOP’s there are many ways that things could be done and many pilots have slightly different thoughts on various emergencies, little things they may do or ask for which could help, so it’s also good to talk about these.
A Rejected Take-Off?
An example would be turning the aircraft or stopping straight ahead in the event of an RTO (rejected take-off) with an engine fire warning. It can be useful to turn the aircraft in strong winds to stop the wind blowing the fire and fumes onto the fuselage, however it may also be prudent not to turn such a large aircraft on a 45 metre runway as there is little room to manoeuvre.
Turning could also restrict access for emergency services on the paved surface and slides would be deployed for passengers to land into the grass. Lots of things to consider.
The briefing is interactive with the heavy pilot also playing a part although the briefing is always led by pilot flying.
Baggage Offload
Today we get the call from downstairs in the cabin from the cabin crew member in charge stating that there are customers missing at the boarding gate and the TRM has instructed the ramp team to start looking for their bags so that they can be offloaded. It appears we will not be going on time.
Our TRM changes our TOBT (this is a target off blocks time which enables ATC to better plan ground movements). Eventually the passengers are located before we find their bags and they are allowed to board the aircraft, we get the doors closed and I do a welcome onboard PA to everyone.
PA
With the PA our company requires us to state several items as mandatory requirements including introducing the flight crew team and my companies policy on safety and security which includes the recommendation for customers to keep their seat belts fastened whilst seated even when the seat belt sign is off.
On long haul we always recommend that customers fasten their seat belt over their duvets or blankets to avoid being disturbed by the crew if the we have to put the seat belt sign on at short notice.
Closing the Doors
We confirm the doors are actually all closed by our pictorial diagram of the aircraft doors on one of our screens. I then speak to Air Traffic Control stating our aircraft type, stand number, latest weather information identifier (this is a letter of the alphabet and the information is called an ATIS), QNH pressure setting, PDC (confirmation we have received a pre-departure clearance) and confirmation that we are ready. Unfortunately we are then given a 10 minute start up delay on stand. I communicate this to our ground crew that are waiting on the tarmac to push us back.
Pushback & Taxy
Eventually we get going 20 mins late. We pushback start all 4 engines, run the before taxi checklist and get our taxi clearance. At Heathrow different ground controllers have different areas of responsibility so they will only clear you to the limit of their authority before transferring you to the next one.
We are departing from runway 27L and once we start to reach some of the holding points for the runway we can see there is at least 12 aircraft ahead of us. It has taken us 12-13 minutes to taxi the aircraft to this point and it looks like we will have a further 15 minute wait before it’s our turn to take off, the joys of Heathrow!
Tasks During Taxy
We do a mini-brief update to see if any conditions or parameters have changed for take off and revise the crucial parts, we run the before take off checklist and receive a message from the cabin crew that they are secure for departure in the cabin.
This message is conveyed initially by each crew member stationed at the doors on the left hand side of the aircraft over the phone to the senior crew member who then instructs the crew to take seats for take off, she then presses a button on her panel and we get an electronic message in the flight deck stating the ‘cabin is ready’.
Once we are all ready for departure and I have the park brake set I do another PA to the customers updating them on the reason for the delay at the holding point. On the ground we try to do PA’s to the customers as often as possible to keep them in the loop with what is going on, there is nothing worse when you’re sat on an aircraft as a passenger with nothing happening and no information.
Take-off
It’s finally our turn for departure, we check the clearance with each other from ATC to ‘line up and wait 27L’. We check visually for traffic on approach and also check our navigation displays for TCAS (Traffic Collision Avoidance System) traffic.
Once lined up you have to be ready to depart as soon as ATC clear you as airports want to try and maximise their capacities for traffic on the runways, if everyone took 15-30 seconds to set thrust, over a day it could mean some aircraft not being able to depart later in the day.
Wind Direction
We check the wind direction and speed, ATC will read us the wind with the take off clearance but there are also wind socks we can use.
Setting Thrust
Now comes one of the best parts of the job, this bit never gets boring! ATC give us take-off clearance, we set our elapsed time clocks to run, and I stand the thrust levers up, confirm engines are stable and then press the TOGA buttons on the top of the 4 thrust levers, the thrust levers then set the take off thrust automatically, considering the weight of the aircraft the acceleration still amazes me.
Take-off Roll
At this point in my head I’m thinking about stopping the aircraft in an emergency and almost reciting my actions in my head. I’m transferring my eyes to outside to keep the aircraft straight and the wings level, whilst looking inside checking my PFD (Primary Flight Display) for the speed and also the EICAS (Engine Indications Crew Alerting System) for the engine parameters to ensure they are normal.
Calling Stop?
There are several emergencies I can call stop for and the Captain can call stop for anything he/she likes but normally we would only stop for major emergencies like an engine failure, any fire on the aircraft, wind shear warning, take off config warning, blocked runway or some sort of control restriction. Stopping an aircraft this size is a major and challenging manoeuvre.
With any minor items it is normally safer to continue the take off. The pilot monitoring (the Captain today) calls 80 kts which is just under 100mph, this is a check to ensure I am still alive and I’m not incapacitated but it is also a check to remind us that after this point we are more “continue” minded and we are only going to stop the aircraft for something very major.
V1, Rotate…
I receive the call of V1 (take off decision speed) which I acknowledge by taking my left hand off the thrust levers as we are now committed to taking off, V1 is the last chance a decision can be made to stop the aircraft without us going off the end of the runway. Whatever happens now we are taking off!
At the call of rotate I gently pull back on the column and rotate the aircraft into the air. The rate is 2.5 degrees a second and my target pitch is 15 degrees. The Captain calls positive rate – this ensures we are safely climbing away from the ground before retracting the landing gear, I then call ‘gear up’ and he raises the landing gear. The gear provides a lot of drag so as soon as it can be retracted the better as we can improve our climb performance.
Climb
We are heavy so we climb slowly at around 1,000ft per min. At an altitude of 1,000ft we have to perform a noise abatement procedure which involves accelerating normally only a few knots (we took off at 160kts which is around 185mph) to retract one stage of flap, we reduce power from take off thrust to climb thrust and climb away with flap 10 out until we reach 4,000ft at this point we then accelerate further and retract the flaps.
Typically out of London we may not get continuous climb so we may have to level off at an intermediate level or altitude.
At this point we are thinking about other aircraft, descending towards us, we can avoid this threat by managing our rates of climb. Once cleared above transition level we set a standard pressure setting on our altimeters and at 10,000ft we accelerate to our climb speed which is 320kts today.
10,000ft Checks
The captain turns off all the external lights and we have a discussion regarding whether it is safe to switch the seat belt signs off. There looks to be some weather we may need to fly through so we hold off on the seatbelt signs until we get higher. The cabin crew (unless we have said otherwise) automatically release themselves to commence their duties.
After we climb through 20,000ft we release our heavy pilot to commence his rest in the bunks in the flight deck. This is a bit like a small cabin on a ship with bunk beds, we have lighting and heating controls with pillows and sleeping bags.
In the Cruise
At cruising altitude we start our paperwork, monitor the aircraft systems and discuss contingency planning, we will look at the weather and notams for en-route airfields, our first available one is Shannon in Ireland so we plot that on our navigational displays and have a quick look at the ILS chart for the approach in use which is onto runway 24.
We send off an oceanic clearance to Shanwick control. Effectively there are tracks for all aircraft planned to cross the Atlantic or we could be planned on a random route that our company has chosen. The tracks are modified every day and during the day they go east to west and at night west to east as that is where the majority of the traffic movement is.
NAT Tracks & Weather
The tracks are planned to avoid any weather if possible whilst taking advantage of the wind as best as possible, flying towards the US and Canada you can expect to have headwinds so we pick routes where the headwinds are least outside of the jet streams and on the way back we pick tracks that are in the jet streams to take advantage of the tailwind.
To give an example we would expect the flight time coming back from Vegas to be at least 90 minutes quicker. There is no radar over the Atlantic so air traffic control plan aircraft at different levels, speeds and tracks to keep separation, you must maintain the track and the level although there may be an opportunity to change level later on.
Cabin Communications
The cabin crew call is every 30 mins to check we are ok and vice versa and this is normally done over the phone and is an opportunity for us to brief each other on any situation that may be arising. We continue to monitor the aircraft systems, including the temperature in each zone of the aircraft, fuel checks and planning and contingency planning. We revisit the actions and plans if we were to have an engine failure.
We then get to choose some lunch from a menu and the cabin crew on the upper deck bring this in for us. Entry to the flight deck is monitored, they would usually call us to warn us they are coming and we have cameras around the door to check it is clear before electronically unlocking and opening the door. There is also a keypad by the door and the cabin crew can request entry through that, however, we can always accept or deny entry.
Pilot Rest
I plan the rest for each pilot, today we get 2 hours and 50 minutes each. So effectively the heavy first officer will cover our breaks as he/she takes the first rest, we have an alarm that wakes him up in the bunk area and he would come out and sit in the Captains seat and my seat to cover each of our breaks in turn.
In the bunk sometimes I sleep, sometimes I may read a book or watch a programme on my iPad. Our bunk area on the 747 is great, it can only be accessed from the flight deck and is very quiet and dark so really helps us get some rest. During low workloads it is much better to ensure we all rest so we are all awake and alert for the approach and landing when the workload is higher. The pilot flying will normally choose which break they would like to have. I decided to take the middle break.
Crossing the Atlantic
Crossing the Atlantic we speak to air traffic control through our HF radios and through our FMC, it is a little like text messaging and it’s called CPDLC. We have to get a clearance to avoid weather and we have a dedicated frequency 123.450 which we tune up so that all pilots in a similar area can talk to one another, it’s not for idle chit chat but more for warning others about weather or turbulence.
Half way across the Atlantic we switch to Canada air traffic controllers. The flight plan today has us routing towards Goose Bay which is quite far north and even after making landfall in Canada there are not many options to land in an emergency. The routing has us eventually turning south into the US over Minneapolis and then towards Salt Lake City approaching Nevada and Vegas from the North.
Crew Rest
Before heading off for my break I head off for a walk around the aircraft to stretch my legs and chat to the cabin crew to check they are all ok. It is a good way of picking up on an issues as we cannot see their body language when we speak on the phone. Inevitably you may get chatting to some customers, I also quite like to grab some chocolate to keep the energy levels up from our club kitchen which is a buffet area in the Club World galley where there is sandwiches, ice cream, drinks, biscuits and chocolate that you can help yourself to.
As I mentioned earlier we are full today so even half way through the flight there are a lot of people standing up, drinking and being quite loud, especially in world traveller cabin.
The cabin crew down there are very busy and running out of alcohol I suggest putting on the seat belt signs for 20 minutes to give them a chance to tidy up, bring the noise levels down a bit for other customers and give them a chance to get organised for the next service.
Half the cabin crew are on their breaks and we have bunk beds in the roof of the aircraft above the rear galley.
The Rest Area
It is quite a claustrophobic area in the cabin crew rest area, there are spiral stairs that are steep that lead up into the roof from the rear galley, once in the roof there are 4 normal seats for crew to sit in if they wish or if you head further towards the front of the aircraft there are numerous bunk beds with sleeping bags, duvets and pillows. I head back up to the flight deck to start my rest and change into my pyjamas and manage to get my head down for 90 mins or so.
I am woken up to the ‘ding dong’ that means the end of my rest, like any alarm clock its not a popular noise. We always try to get out of the bunk rest facility quickly so the next guy can get in to maximise their opportunity to sleep. We can get changed again and cleaned up in the flight deck whilst the other pilot continues to fly the aircraft.
Arrival Briefing
Back in the seat we are now in Canada and whilst flying the aircraft, checking weather and notams for alternates and liaising with the cabin crew regarding turbulence reported ahead, the other SFO and I are planning the Arrival procedure, Approach and taxi in to Vegas.
The first thing I do is work through all the notams, some of the notams indicate taxiways are closed or have reduced wing span clearances, I mark these with a red high marker on my iPad chart app.
Performance
I work out the performance for each runway in terms of how much tailwind we can take at our estimated landing weight and what setting on the auto brake we can use with either idle, partial or full reverse. We use reverse thrust to save brake wear and if it is a short turnaround it stops the brakes getting overheated. If we are using the auto brake on the landing roll then we will not stop any sooner by using reverse as the braking distance will be the same, controlled by the auto brake.
Airport Restrictions
We check the Airport notes which is under the AOI section of our charting app, we also check our companies briefing notes about the airfield. We are expecting to do a non-precision approach onto either 19L or 19R, both these runways are on the short side for a 747. (this is sort of let down procedure via imaginary points in the sky or by using other less accurate navigation aids – normally we use ILS approaches at most airfields which is an accurate system giving us lateral and vertical precision guidance to the runway).
Runway Length
Typically we are using runways around the world in excess of 3,000 metres. The 747 can land no problem on shortish runways in fact we could just about do around 1400 metres with max braking in normal conditions. However, as it is such a large aircraft if it is a shortish runway we need to take particular care in ensuring we land in the touchdown zone and preferably on the markers.
Non-Precision Approach
The non-precision approaches are both in excess of a normal 3 degree glideslope, this all points to the threat of a runway excursion (running off the end of the runway) which can be created by a fast un-stable approach with a potentially long landing.
This is further compounded by ATC keeping you high due to restrictions on radar vectoring due to terrain and helicopter traffic corridors that head towards the Grand Canyon. We will also expect to be cut in very tight for a short final approach as ATC cannot vector us further than 6NM north due to Nellis Air Force Base being on the extended centre line. These threats will be discussed in the approach briefing.
Passenger Medical Issue
Next, the cabin crew call with a customer in Business Class who is experiencing chest pains. We have a contract with a facility called Medlink. This a facility where we can call them up on our satellite phone and obtain advice and direction on how to proceed. They have specialist aviation doctors available to talk to. They will also give a recommendation on continuing or diverting the flight.
Medlink know all the medical supplies we have onboard and also know the training our cabin crew have. In the event of a diversion they can advise on the suitability of a diversion airfield in terms of their medical facilities on the ground.
Divert?
If we had a choice we would rather divert to an airfield that a nearby full facility hospital where our customer can receive the care they require very quickly.
Luckily today we have a doctor onboard who is assisting the cabin crew and Medlink recommend us to just keep the customer on oxygen and monitor them, with the doctors assistance we are advised to continue to Las Vegas unless the customer gets worse. Medlink arrange a medical team to meet us on arrival.
Arrival PA
We have made up some time but are till going to arrive late into Las Vegas my next job is to speak to our ground teams at Vegas and make a plan for some of our connecting customers.
They advise they believe the customers will still make their connections with some assistance so we arrange ground staff to meet some of our customers at the top of the airbridge on arrival and we pass this information on to the CSM who passes on the information to the customers.
Descent
Next it is time to wake the Captain up, we order him a nice strong coffee to help him get back in the zone as quickly as possible, we brief the approach, arrival and taxi in, along with contingency’s and how we are actually going to fly the RNAV approach. This looks at the modes we shall use on the mode control panel, discuss alternates and their weather and suitability.
We also revise some memory action manoeuvres that are pertinent to this approach including TCAS RA (a mandatory command to manoeuvre to avoid another aircraft) in the landing configuration due to helicopter traffic and GPWS Pull up (a mandatory command to climb the aircraft with max thrust to avoid terrain) due to the surrounding terrain.
Missed Approach
We discuss missed approach procedures and chose a high speed exit to the runway that if we have not got the wheels down by that point we shall initiate a missed approach. At 40 minutes to go I do a PA to our customers detailing the arrival time, route and weather information.
We always put the seat belt signs on a minimum of 20 minutes before landing to give the cabin crew the time they need to secure the cabin. For example, if the electronic seat adjustment in First or Club World fails then the cabin crew have to manually restore the seats to their upright positions for landing.
Approach & Landing
After the briefing and PA has been completed I give control to the Captain who will fly the approach for my landing. We are one of the few airlines to fly monitored approach procedures, most airlines operate this way in low visibility procedures but we do it all of the time. It has the advantage that both pilots at the controls are involved in the approach and the objective for the captain today is to get the aircraft to 1000ft on the approach meeting the Stable Approach Criteria. I would then take control and land. It really is true (like the saying) a good approach leads to a good landing.
ATC Clearance
Today, we are cleared by ATC to descend with the arrival. In the US this means we are free to descend at our own discretion but must meet all of the restrictions on the arrival. Our FMC has this all programmed and we have checked it so the autopilot should do this automatically for us in VNAV mode. We then get given a short cut which reduces are track miles, so therefore we have descend the aircraft a little more aggressively by using the speed brake.
Speed Brake
The speed brake just gives us more drag so if we descend at the same speed with the speed brake out then we can achieve a higher rate of descent. The captain has to work hard as today vectoring by ATC is quite poor and they keep us higher than we expected. We do manage to get on the vertical profile and lined up with the runway at 4 miles out fully configured with the landing gear and flaps. We get the auto-callout from the flight deck speaker system of ‘1000’ telling us we are at 1000ft Radio altitude – actual height above the ground.
Disconnecting the Autopilot
I visually check we have met all of the stable approach criteria and call ‘stable, visual, I have control’. I take control and disconnect the autopilot and auto throttle, its a little windy, we have around 15kts (20mph) of wind from the left, so the speed is a little unstable which requires constant thrust corrections.
100ft…
At around 100ft, everything looks ok, at 30ft I flare by raising the nose slightly, I squeeze the right rudder pedal to bring the aircraft in line with the runway and counter act the rolling motion by a small amount of left aileron down. The main gears touch the runway firmly, I lower the nose gently and the captain ensures the speed brake deploys and gives me partial reverse thrust on all 4 engines. Its important to lower the nose gently as the nose wheel is not designed to support large forces unlike the main gear, first class is also directly above the nose wheel!
Rate my Landing
So my days work is almost complete and although we have been working hard for the last 12 hours or so, I know according to our passengers the quality of my work will be assessed in the last 30 seconds! It wasn’t the best landing, but it wasn’t awful either.
I jokingly give it 6/10, but the Captain gave me 7/10 – clearly he wants me to buy the first round of drinks! Even more so on larger aircraft it is so important to land at the right place and at the right speed more so than the actual touchdown feel, however every pilot will also tell you we would like to land at the right place, the right speed and make the wheels just kiss the ground! Unfortunately it doesn’t happen every day.
Taxy
The final part is navigating the airports taxiways with ATC and it is very busy. We must ensure we stay alert and focussed until the aircraft is on stand with the park brake set. Approaching our stand we start the APU to give us electrical power when we shut the engines down and instruct the cabin crew to place the doors into manual mode – this means when the doors open the slide will not deploy.
Each crew member will be responsible for their own door, but once they have placed their own door into manual mode they proceed across to the other side of the aircraft and check their colleague has correctly placed their door into manual mode. The CSM will then call each left hand door for them to confirm they have each got 2 doors at each station in manual mode.
Setting the Park Brake
I set the park brake and the captain switches the generators to the APU and shuts down the engines and switches off the seat belt signs. We run the shut down checklist and then I do a farewell PA to the customers. After this the three of us conduct a post flight review, this is effectively a de-brief and we discuss what went well, what didn’t and why it didn’t and how we can improve for next time.
We are then informed that some of the customers would like to come and visit the flight deck so we welcome a family with some young children, they sit in the seats with our hats on (I hope mine didn’t have too much hair gel stuck in it!) and we take some photos for them and answer any questions they may have, we always like to have a bit of banter with the passengers.
Leaving the Aircraft
Once we have secured the aircraft, all the passengers are off and the cabin crew have completed their checks we all get off the aircraft together handing authority over to the engineering team.
We head to immigration, which, yes it can take us just as long as the normal passengers to navigate through. The longest I have waited is about 2 hours, but not here today in Vegas, we are all through in about 25 minutes, we collect our suitcases and head towards our transport which is a large coach.
To the Hotel
We tip the driver for loading all of our cases, mine is always the heaviest, I overpack! Have a short de-brief on the bus with the cabin crew, but more importantly we discuss what the plans are for our ‘down-time’.
We have got to the hotel at just before midnight UK time, but it is only 2pm here in Vegas. Luckily Vegas is one of our shortest transfers, it only takes 10 minutes from the airport, but a lot of our destinations can take up to two hours due to poor infrastructure and congestion.
Hotel
Once in the hotel, we collect our keys which are normally all ready for us, some hotels will give us a mini-briefing on the facilities etc, but here we just grab our keys and head up to our rooms. We get discounts on food and sometimes drink in our hotels, the hotels want to encourage us to spend our money there, but rarely do I stay around the hotel.
After a long day the key is to dump your bags, jump in the shower, touch base with home and get down to the bar, if you sit or lie down you don’t get back up again! My work is finished and I can enjoy the Vegas casinos, hotels and pool parties (even if I am too old!)!
Conclusion
It’s been about 17 hours since I left my house this morning so it’s a long day. We not get 3 days off here before heading back to London. In this time we are free to do what we want.
I hope my wife doesn’t read this as she will confirm her thoughts that going to work is like a holiday!
Hopefully this gives you an insight into a typical day at work. If you have any further questions please select the ‘Ask an Airline Pilot a Question‘ under the home menu on our webpage and one of will get back to you.