Peek-A-Boo!!
One of the things I noticed when I started flying the Airbus was the number of people that like to have a look in the cockpit. Unfortunately, nowadays they can't do it during the flight for reasons we all know. During boarding though we always have one or two people coming in for a visit.
Why do grown adults still have this urge of taking a peek into the cockpit? Are they making sure I'm not sipping from a bottle of vodka? Are they checking if the Captain has a guide dog next to his seat?... I don't think so. I understand some of them are aviation enthusiasts and a sniff of the cockpit will make their day, but most of them are not. For some reason all those buttons and switches have a special appeal to the layman...
I was lucky enough that before 9/11 it was no problem for a 10 year old to visit the cockpit during cruise. I would sit in there for a few minutes and enjoy the view at 39,000ft. Of course, back then I had no idea what stall speed or mach number were. But I still loved being in there enjoying the view. I would chat to the pilots, take a picture with their hats on... All great childhood memories of a kid who's bedroom walls were covered with cockpit pictures.
Now that I'm lucky enough to be sitting in the cockpit everyday, I enjoy flying in the cabin. And I actually do it quite often (the wonders of commuting!!). I could join the pilots up front, but I would rather sit in the back. Just like passengers enjoy having a look in the cockpit, I now like sitting in the cabin. We actually forget there's so much going on in the back while we're closed in the cockpit. Plus, the flight attendants take good care of us when we're sitting there...
I have to say it's funny hearing some of the passengers' comments during the flight. From the"know-it-all" who's trying to explain to his wife what's going on, to the ones that hold on to their seats during turbulence. The frequent flyer who reads his newspaper during take-off and the one who says the pilot is a rookie. They're all sitting in the cabin, on every single flight!
On my last commuting flight, the aircraft was empty as I walked in during pre-boarding. I took one of the over wing emergency exits. Usually if there's an extra-crew on board (who's familiar with door handling and evacuation procedures), they'll take one of the emergency exits. Whether it's on an act of good will or just for the extra leg-room, remains a mystery...
So that day, a young girl sits next to me; only the two of us were on that row. Her english wasn't great, but then again, neither is mine. She kept looking at me wondering why I already had a can of Dr. Pepper on my tray table, since everyone was still getting seated and obviously no service had taken place. After a couple of minutes we are chatting about the company's unpopular weight limit policy for checked-in luggage. Then one of the flight attendants comes to the emergency exits to give us the safety briefing. She asks this new friend of mine to please read the Safety Card and not to worry about the door, that I would know what to do, and just left. Needless to say, now the girl was just staring at me. So I decided to put down my glossy magazine and go back to small talk. After a short while I learned Marie wasn't a big fan of flying. She tried to explain to me this irrational fear she has. The whole subject is pretty interesting. They will tell you they know it's statistically much safer than any other mean of transportation but, they will still cringe on every little noise. I tried to chat to her during take-off and landing but at times, I don't think she was paying much attention to me. And her smile after we landed said it all, "We're back on the ground!!". When we said our goodbyes she mentioned that me talking to her and explaining a couple of things actually had helped. She had a trip back four days later... I wonder how that went.
So just as a visit to the cockpit can be exciting to a passenger, a couple of hours in the cabin can also be pretty interesting for a pilot
Pilot Flying.
Why do grown adults still have this urge of taking a peek into the cockpit? Are they making sure I'm not sipping from a bottle of vodka? Are they checking if the Captain has a guide dog next to his seat?... I don't think so. I understand some of them are aviation enthusiasts and a sniff of the cockpit will make their day, but most of them are not. For some reason all those buttons and switches have a special appeal to the layman...
I was lucky enough that before 9/11 it was no problem for a 10 year old to visit the cockpit during cruise. I would sit in there for a few minutes and enjoy the view at 39,000ft. Of course, back then I had no idea what stall speed or mach number were. But I still loved being in there enjoying the view. I would chat to the pilots, take a picture with their hats on... All great childhood memories of a kid who's bedroom walls were covered with cockpit pictures.
Now that I'm lucky enough to be sitting in the cockpit everyday, I enjoy flying in the cabin. And I actually do it quite often (the wonders of commuting!!). I could join the pilots up front, but I would rather sit in the back. Just like passengers enjoy having a look in the cockpit, I now like sitting in the cabin. We actually forget there's so much going on in the back while we're closed in the cockpit. Plus, the flight attendants take good care of us when we're sitting there...
I have to say it's funny hearing some of the passengers' comments during the flight. From the"know-it-all" who's trying to explain to his wife what's going on, to the ones that hold on to their seats during turbulence. The frequent flyer who reads his newspaper during take-off and the one who says the pilot is a rookie. They're all sitting in the cabin, on every single flight!
On my last commuting flight, the aircraft was empty as I walked in during pre-boarding. I took one of the over wing emergency exits. Usually if there's an extra-crew on board (who's familiar with door handling and evacuation procedures), they'll take one of the emergency exits. Whether it's on an act of good will or just for the extra leg-room, remains a mystery...
So that day, a young girl sits next to me; only the two of us were on that row. Her english wasn't great, but then again, neither is mine. She kept looking at me wondering why I already had a can of Dr. Pepper on my tray table, since everyone was still getting seated and obviously no service had taken place. After a couple of minutes we are chatting about the company's unpopular weight limit policy for checked-in luggage. Then one of the flight attendants comes to the emergency exits to give us the safety briefing. She asks this new friend of mine to please read the Safety Card and not to worry about the door, that I would know what to do, and just left. Needless to say, now the girl was just staring at me. So I decided to put down my glossy magazine and go back to small talk. After a short while I learned Marie wasn't a big fan of flying. She tried to explain to me this irrational fear she has. The whole subject is pretty interesting. They will tell you they know it's statistically much safer than any other mean of transportation but, they will still cringe on every little noise. I tried to chat to her during take-off and landing but at times, I don't think she was paying much attention to me. And her smile after we landed said it all, "We're back on the ground!!". When we said our goodbyes she mentioned that me talking to her and explaining a couple of things actually had helped. She had a trip back four days later... I wonder how that went.
So just as a visit to the cockpit can be exciting to a passenger, a couple of hours in the cabin can also be pretty interesting for a pilot
(Photo courtesy of Ben Pritchard)
Smooth landings,Pilot Flying.
posted by Pilot Flying at
11:37 PM
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