57businesstraveller.com APRIL 2020
OPINION
Whatarethebestairports
totakeofffromorlandat?
AnywhereintheCaribbean,Mauritiusor
theMaldives.Theviewsareamazing,being
abletoseethebeautifulcoloursinthewater,
thereefsandfabulouswhitesandybeaches.
TheCaribbeanis wherewegettodosome
propermanualflying,inotherwords,bereal
pilots.Withnotmanyaircraftaround,air
trafficcontrolallowsustopositionourselves
to landratherthanthemguidingusin.
What’syourfavourite
aircrafttofly?
I haveflownvariousBoeingandAirbus
aircraft.Personally,I enjoyAirbus.I prefer
thelogicofthevarioussystemsaswellas
thembeinguser-friendlyaircraftinhelping
thepilottomanagetheworkload.Also,if
youenjoycomputergamesthentheAirbus
is ideal;youflyit usinga joystick– the
technicaltermusedbyAirbusis “sidestick”
(withtheexceptionoftheA300)– whereas
Boeingusesa controlcolumn(whichlooksa
bit likea steeringwheel).
Whatis thescariestmoment
youhavehadflying?
Pilotsdon’thavescarymoments;justtimes
whenadrenalinestartstoflow.Weatheris
themostcommoncause.Thunderstormsare
intenselypowerfulandcancauseanaircraft
to crash.Itis notlightningstrikesthatarea
problem– I havehada fewofthose– but
severeturbulenceandhailbatteringthe
structure.Ontheflightdeckwehavea
sophisticatedweatherradarsystemtoidentify
thunderstormsandhelpusavoidthem.
Insomepartsoftheworld,suchasAfrica
orIndia,thunderstormscanbemassive,
risingupto60,000feetaswellascovering
a widearea,soavoidingthemis quitea
challenge.Itcaninvolve
deviationsfromourtrackof
upto 100 milesandcan
occupyusforsometime.It
is definitelyanadrenaline-
pumpingtime.Stronggusty
windsforlandingarealsoa
challenge,particularlywhen
thewindis acrossthe
runway,knownasa
crosswind.Intermsofthingsgoingwrong
withtheaircraft,thistendstoberather
straightforwardasit is
somethingwearetrainedto
dealwithona regularbasis.Whoaretheworst
andbestpilotsyouhave
flownwith?
Thisis a difficultquestiontoanswer.First,
commercialpilotshavetopassa rigorous
assessmentandtrainingcoursetoworkfor
anairline.Inaddition,pilotsaretested
everysixmonthsinthesimulatortoassess
theirflyingskillsandmanagementinboth
normalandemergencysituations.Also,
everytwoyearswehaveanassessmentona
normalpassengerflightaswellasanannual
technicalexam.Ifwefailtomeetthe
standardsinanyofthesethenourlicenceis
suspendedandfurthertrainingprovided
untilthestandardis met.Wealsohave
“standardoperatingprocedures”,which
ensuresthatwealloperateinthesameway
soweknowwhateachotheris doing.Allof
thisleaveslittlespaceforbadpilotstoexist.However,it is fairtosaythatabovethat
minimumstandardthereis a variationin
abilities.Still,inthe25-plusyearsthatI
havebeenflying,noonehasevermanaged
toscareme!Doyouhave
anyConcorde
memories?
I onlyflewConcordeas
a passenger.Thememories
thatcometomindaresize
andspeed.Thepassenger
cabinwasverysmallwith
only 100 seatsand,beingquite
tall,I wasunabletostandup
straight.Theflightdeckitselfwas
alsocramped,particularlyasyouhad
twopilotsanda flightengineer.Butit
wasa wonderfulexperience.Itis oneofthe
fewcommercialaircraftwhereyouwere
pushedbackintotheseatontake-offwith
a realsenseofspeedandpower.
MyflightleftHeathrowinthemorning
andarrivedinNewYorkintimefor
breakfast,takingonlythreehours
22 minutes– justenoughtimeforan
aperitif,lunchaccompaniedbyfinewines,
anda liqueur.Destinationswerequite
limitedasit wasgenerallynotpermittedto
flysupersonicovermanylandareas.
BritishAirwaysendedupservingNew
YorktwicedailyandBarbadosoncea week.
ItalsooperatedpleasureflightsovertheBay
ofBiscayaswellasotherdestinations.Itwas
sadtoseesuchaniconicaircraftretireand
toseetheminimumjourneytimetoNew
Yorkincreasetomorethansevenhours.BT
If you have a question you’d like to ask our
pilot, email [email protected]Ask the pilot
Our undercover captain reveals what it’s like to fly for a living
Pilots don’t have
scary moments;
just times when
adrenaline starts
to flow