Easyjet.inside The Cockpit

[Smowball]

Who's just watched this?? Good god - I've got fridges older than those pilots!! (Ok not literally!) . Bit of an eye opener though!!

[vulcan42]

I have served on OCU's(Operational conversion Unit) in the RAF where the crews are retrained to fly different aircraft. These Pilots are some of the best trained in the world but I've seen instructors taking over from quite highly ranked Officers, it doesn't mean they're incompetent as Pilots, it just means they haven't mastered the intricacies of the different aircraft controls. Pilots spend hours doing "bumps and circuits"( touching down and taking off again) it's inevitable somebody will make a dubious landing. Even the Red Arrow team, all fighter pilots with combat experience, go through months of training before flying in display. It's typical of programmes of this nature, the pilot might make a dozen perfect landings but it's the dodgy one shown on TV.

[malagabob]

A lot of the posts point out the age of these people. Possibly because the posters are 40+. Age I think doesn't come into it They've done their training and have passed as capable.

[Quizmonster]

There are old pilots and bold pilots, but there aren't many old bold pilots!

[ivor4781]

well you never normally see the pilots there already in the cockpit and they don't see the passengers either so you've probably been piloted already be a 20 odd year old :-)

[Samuraisan]

I want Tom Hanks (Scully) to fly my plane.

[Smowball]

And the reason for the question was that I was simply shocked at how quickly they qualified to fly the general public.

[malagabob]

The only thing I couldn't understand was. The one flight going to Athens had a medical emergency. The captain and first officer had to check what was the nearest airport to divert to in case the passengers condition deteriorated. Why did Kos airport come up ( trained pilot only could land there ) when they would be passing there destination airport. ?

[ivor4781]

its from 18 to 24 months (its not that short) to be a co-pilot then another 4 years to be come a captain

[douglas9401]

If that's the case, ivor, James T Kirk has just gone up in my estimation.

So much responsibility on the shoulders of one so young.

[Prudie]

Well I watched and have series linked - thoroughly entertaining. The one who botched his landings just happens to be young but so were all the others and don't think his age is in any way relevant. Maybe he won't pass.