Who can be a pilot? Thats the wrong question because even a monkey can learn to fly if you spend time training it. The correct question is who can be a COMMERCIAL PILOT? That was the question which haunted me for a good couple of months of my training before I finally figured out the answer. Before I go any further I want to say that I write this blog to try to inspire people to fly and I am very glad I am doing that with my stories but at the same time I want people to know what flying is all about cause its not always the fairytale I make it seem to be and what you are about to read maybe painful or controversial but this is the truth as I see it.
I always wanted to fly. It was in my blood and the truth is I dont care if I am paid 10000$ or 10000 rs I just want to fly. Its not about the money, its not about the air hostresses with their really cute short skirts nor is it about travelling the world. I dont care at all if i am flying a brand new 777 or a 1960 cessna 150. All I want to do is fly. The truth is not everyone in this industry think that way. There are people who are doing it for everything else but flying. True all these things matter in life but that doesnt mean you do it for the sake of money or glamour. A true pilot is not a person who flies for that. But that doesn’t make him a commercial pilot.
Lets start with my first few flights. I was always and have always been more than an hour early for each and every flight I ever flew. Never hurried and did whatever I needed to do. But no matter what I did I lacked confidence in the beginning atleast. I would not know the flows completely well and I would always buckle under the pressure. The truth was that I was a good pilot. I could do all the manuevers within what I was supposed to do and I never got lost. Yet I used to flunk checks.
Coming to checks let me talk about Sabena and it policies regarding this issue. If you failed a check in the same phase twice you would have a hearing board and 3 hearing boards and you are out. It looks harsh but the truth is it is absolutely correct. In the airline industry if you flunk a check twice you are out. This is a fact. I am fortunate to say that I finished my course without ever having a hearing board.And to be honest with you if you fluck a check twice or more than something is really wrong. This is a huge topic amongst us but to be honest with you I support Sabena. If you flunk a check it was mostly due to lack of skill or lack of knowledge or lack of confidence and to be honest with you I would not dare fly with a person who lacked any one of these as these are absolutely important to be a commercial pilot.
Flunking a check is not a bad thing. In fact you should be thankful for the guy who flunked you cause that person just in fact SAVED YOUR LIFE. I know it sounds ridiculus but had you done that same mistake you did in a real life situation you could have lost your licence, went to jail or killed some people or worst be dead yourself. I noticed that people including me take it very personal to an extent of saying ” I did everything well but he still flunked me”. That is absolutely wrong and quite frankly the most disgusting and disgraceful thing you can every say as a pilot. Admitting a mistake is the most important thing. So what if you couldnt make your short field landing on the numbers or couldnt maintain + or – 100 feet in a steep turn. A mistake is a mistake and what if you had to do it in a real life situation? You would be dead and the honest truth is the ashes of your ashes will be the only thing left of you. So please stop kidding youself and move forward instead of lingering in the past. Make absolutely sure you get it right the next time.
Another reason why I used to flunk or have lousy flights was because I was not prepared or was way too casual. There is absolutely no room for being casual in the airline industry. Its very serious business and if you are casual about it then I am sorry but you got to go. I am not saying you dont have fun but if want to go fly when the weather is bad or do stuff that is too risky then thats a problem. Dont get me wrong cause I was one of those fools who was very casual and did crazy things and honestly I should have been dead by now. I have landed when winds were gusting to 20 knots on a solo and I did a crosswind landing when it was gusting at 30 knots crosswind with an instructor but to be honest with you that is not something I am proud of and infact regret it for being so complacent.
I may have had the skills to land that plane even at 40 knots of winds but that is not the point. The point is that I unnecessarily put both mine and my passengers lives at unnecessary risk. Had something gone wrong there I would have not survived at such conditions for sure and I beg of you to never do the same mistake I made.
A commercial pilot has absolutely no room for error and is the one who is always prepared for anything and everything and at the same time keep safety the first thing in his mind. He who is self disciplined and calm and composed when the shit hits the roof is a commercial pilot. Unless you are a complete professional you cannot and will not be a commercial pilot. As the CEO of Sabena said “I should be confident enough with your flying that I can trust my daughter’s life be in your hands.” Well I can see how this sentence can be twisted but the point is can you let your daughter’s life be in your hands?
P.S- I make a couple of spelling mistakes onlu cause I write at nights and at the end I really dont care so kindly understand.
