Weeks 86-93: Training has all come to an end!!

Firstly a massive apology for the lack of updates during the remainder of my line training, but given my priority was on getting the job done, I don't feel quite so bad! 

Line training continued with some really great days out all over Europe, as well as some more interesting days closer to home. It's amazing how much I knew about the Airbus, but at the same time knew practically nothing and found myself very much at the start of a learning curve! The major difference from the simulators and the real world, is that in the sims the biggest distraction would maybe be a computer not doing what it was supposed to, and a simple reset was called for. In the real world there seems to be a continuous stream of dispatchers, fuellers, crew and passengers all offering distraction when it comes to getting off the stand, and given Europe's congested airspace sometimes it's not possible to get off the stand at all due to heavy slots.

Of the more interesting trips I had was a double up to Glasgow, as the weather and terrain made for approaches needing a lot of thought and very little scope for dawdling. Given the height of the hills surrounding the airport, ATC will only clear approaching aircraft to altitudes which keep them safe against the terrain, but if the heading they've given you isn't great you end up high of the glideslope and inevitably have to perform an intercept from above. This basically means you are descending on a path that is steeper than normal, and if the aircraft hasn't already been decelerated and dirtied up (normally to flaps 2), the speed is rapidly going to increase again and the approach is going to end with a go-around. Thankfully my training Captain was prompt to give me some advise and therefore avoiding a wasted approach, advise which came in handy on later flights to other destinations with similar challenges.

Training for me went well, and although not everyone's opinion I definitely enjoyed it. Yes there were moments when I ran out of ideas but that is why the Captain is in charge, and it is their experience that makes them the skipper. I suppose it just took a bit longer to get more creative with the approaches, and with experience I grew to understand what the aircraft could do, and at what point I had to intervene if the situation wasn't going as well as I initially planned. 

Towards the end of training I had bad news which eventually became good news. Due to an aircraft arriving late, a four sector day became a two sector one, so my final line check was slipping back to a later date. However, after meeting with the head of training in the crew room but sheer luck, and him having a look through my training file, the decision was made that if I performed at the easyJet standard on my aircraft competency check, my final line check could go ahead two flights early. I am very pleased to say that the ACC went well, and I completed my line check down to Marseille with no issues to prevent me from being released to the line.

LIne flying has been the real learning experience for me, as the safety net of having a training Captain has been removed, and the amount of scenarios I have seen has rapidly increased. Compared to going into the big airports like Gatwick and Amsterdam, the reality is that smaller airports tend to be more challenging and there are significantly more things that don't go how you want. This tends to be due to a mix of airline traffic and smaller training planes, the result being shortened approaches and the threat of high energy approaches. That said the challenges just confirm to me that this job is the best ever, the exciting moments staving off any hint of complacency. I've also had a couple of night stops which have been great for getting to know more crew, as we're fairly isolated in the flight deck and it's nice to find out more than if my colleagues make a good cuppa!

Ironically as my training has come to and end, i've found myself disappearing back into the books. It took a long time to commit a lot of the required knowledge to memory, but almost word-for-word every Captain has said that if you leave the books too long, you'll find it impossible to get back into them. 

My plan from here is to do the odd update, maybe every 4-6 weeks to keep updating those interested as to what it's like flying for the UK's biggest airline. For those of you that have followed me on here during training I hope you have enjoyed the blog, and hopefully there are more stories to come from the line. I also have a fairly busy Instagram account and you can find my stuff at @kieran615 so stop by if pictures take your fancy! Cheers

Week 85: just me and the skipper

As line training has continued from my base at Gatwick, I have been able to visit more airports in the European network. At the beginning of the week I had to days with a return flight on each, both still with a safety pilot riding on the jump seat. This is standard practice during the early stages of line training, and the safety pilot acts as a safety net to catch any missed SOP's during the operation. it's all well and good to say that the Captain should catch any slips, but in the early stages of training they are working quite hard already, so building in extra redundancies is nothing but sensible! Following my second day round trip to Seville in Southern Spain I had (thankfully) proven that I could operate as part of a two person crew, so was released to continue training with just myself and the skipper. 

Yesterday I had quite a busy day to use my new responsibility, doing a return to Basel and also a return to Barcelona. Basel was an interesting start, as there are many threats to be considered ahead of the approach, the most significant being the high ground which surrounds the airfield. Given there was quite a lot of low cloud the terrain wasn't visible, so maintaining the correct track was of vital importance to avoid a rather undesirable situation. 

Barcelona shared some similar threats, with high ground a major cause for concern. Added to this is the threat of birds flying close to the approach given the position relative to the Mediterranean, and the shear size of the airport itself means the taxi route can be pretty complex and getting lost is a fairly easy! To make matters worse I had briefed for the precision approach but on being transferred to approach the I was informed the ILS was switched off due to calibration,  so quickly had to set up for a non-precision approach, brief it, then fly the approach itself. To say my workload went through the roof would be an understatement, but any sort of experiences like that during training can only be good for my learning. On the way back to London we had an incredible view of these lenticular cloud as we crossed the Pyrenees, an indicator of wave lift which is perfect gliding. 

I had another early flight this morning, this time down to the town of Montpellier in the south of France. The day however didn't get off to the best start, as congestion in the skies meant we had a 30 minute delay from air traffic (a slot), so would be starting behind schedule. If that wasn't bad enough, the bleed function of the auxilliary power unit (the APU which is a small engine in the tail which provides electricity and pressurised air) failed so we lost all air conditioning in what was an already cold aircraft. The bleed air is also used to start the rotation of the engines during start up, so without a fully serviceable APU we wouldn't be able to leave. The solution was to use an external unit which is specifically used for starting the engines, but inevitably by the time it arrived and we had worked through the procedure we had been delayed further. That said, I learnt a lot getting to perform a non-standard procedure, another benefit towards my training.

Tomorrow I fly to Bordeaux and back, which will be my 19th and 20th sectors of line training. Sector 20 is significant as it is a progress check point, and my Captain is in fact the Gatwick base Captain, so i'm sure he'll put me through my paces! The reality is I shouldn't be worried but instead continue to do things exactly as normal. If I start changing things that's when i'm going to make mistakes, so ill avoid that at all costs.

Week 83 & 84: Base and line training

It is with an absolute wealth of pride I can now report that I've completed my base training, and am now working through the early stages of line training. As previously reported I was planned to pop to Doncaster for three days base training, but in keeping with the rest of my training there were inevitable issues that meant the old faithful plan B came into play! Unfortunately a rather deep depression decided to park itself just to the West of Scotland, and with that the winds across the British Isles were unacceptably high for the base training. Given it's our first crack at landing the Airbus for real and quite a step from the simulator, as much as possible the detail is flown with the wind not too strong, and flowing down the runway. The solution? Chateauroux, mid-France. 

With the delay in our base training, 4 more guys had been added to the detail so we met all of them in the Gatwick South crew room. On the way down to Chateauroux, Nik swapped seats with the safety pilot, so on our arrival we were able to crack straight on. Nik had already done 3 circuits from our previous base detail, so after doing 9 more I was called up ready to go. The nerves didn't even have a chance to show themselves, as I was straight into the right hand seat getting my chair position right ready to get going. The base Captain Tony was in the left hand seat when I had previously landed back at Gatwick, so it was nice to have a familiar trainer from before. Fortunately on that occasion the landing technique was solid, so his briefing was simply to do that again 12 more times, and i'd be signed off ready for line training. No pressure!

Happily the technique I had been taught and practiced in the simulator showed itself to be a brilliant foundation, and after 7 landings Tony was happy that I was consistently delivering the aircraft to the correct point with a satisfactory touchdown. I was at this point he decided that rather than fly all of my 12 circuits in one go, I would do 5 more the next day giving someone else the chance to get a few landings under their belt.

Thankfully on the second day and once another trainee had flown a collection of circuits, I completed my final 5 and had successfully passed base training ready for line training. Time to get an updated roster!

My roster was quickly amended once I was confirmed as having passed base, and I was surprised to read I was off to Paris for my first three days of training. This came with two emotions; excitement and fear! I was dead chuffed to know I was finally starting my training, and to be based out of Paris for the first few days was an exciting prospect as the place is a veritable monster. That said, the monster also needs to be respected, and having my first three days at Charles de Gaulle would be a baptism of fire!

After positioning to Paris the day before, I found the crew room and went to work printing flight plans. I have been spoilt up to now, an Gatwick has dedicated staff in the easyJet crew room who prepare the flight plans for the day and leave them out ready for collection. However at CDG this is not the case, and as much as it isn't a big deal it still wasn't something I was expecting. My training Captain joined me shortly after, and after a brief discussion we decided that i'd hit the ground running and take the aircraft down to Milan. To say the flight was a blur is an understatement, but I think forever ill remember the point we broke cloud and I flew the approach and landing into Malpensa. 

On my second day of training I flew with a new Captain, and my first rotation was the short hop to Gatwick. The second of these flights was quite notable for me for two reasons; the first was that I flew my first approach with the wind close to my limits, as I completed the landing with a 15 knot crosswind (my limit being 20kts). The second reason was that my girlfriend was in fact a member of the passenger list, and she'd be experiencing first hand how I performed in a full plane.

Unfortunately due to my Captain reporting sick my third day of training was cancelled, but with Alice having stayed we now had the opportunity to explore Paris before positioning home to London. Even with numerous trips on the Metro we must've walked miles trying to squeeze in as many sights as possible in two days. By far and away the highlight was ascending the Eiffel Tower in the darkness, and enjoying the view from the top of a really clear Paris evening. 

Next up i'm off to Berlin and Seville, which are slightly longer flights so I will only have a return flight on each of my next two duties. As long as they both go successfully I will be able to continue line training without the requirement to have a safety pilot spectating from the jump seat. 

Week 82: Line operations from the jumpseat

As described during my last post, this week I had my supernumerary flights planned to see line operations as viewed from the back seat of the flight deck. The point of these flights (in my opinion) is two-fold; firstly and as previously commented it's an opportunity to understand how easyJet run their operation, with standard operating procedures put to use in real scenarios. Secondly (and again this is my opinion), I believe for cadets being put on a supernumerary flight is designed to show them there is a vast amount more to being a First Officer than just pointing the aeroplane where you want it to go! 

My first flight was to Palma on the island of Mallorca, which for my first flight was an ideal length as there wasn't a mad rush to get everything done. For starters, the immediate difference between the simulator and the line is that i'd never met my crew, so would be shaking hands with them for the first time 60 minutes before departure. I have to say the two chaps I met were brilliant, immediately starting my learning process by going through the paper flight plan and helping me to understand the processes involved in deciding the fuel load and how to book an uplift with the fuel company. 

Given we had a relatively early departure, meeting the cabin crew happened on the way to the aircraft. This may seem baffling to some, but the theory of meeting them on the move is pretty sound. As we on the flight deck have to go through introductions and decide on some operational factors, the cabin crew have a similar early introduction to go through. If we were then to come together for a chat this would eat more time into the 60 minutes before departure, and on time departure first thing in the morning is of vital importance. If the first wave of flights leave on time, there is a good chance that particular aircraft will maintain its schedule all day, and just a few minutes delay on the first flight could have a knock on effect hours later. Instead with the 10 minute walk from the crew room to the aircraft, we all took the opportunity to have a brief chat, learn names (something i'm useless at), and informally form the team for the day.

The flight itself was an eye opener, as there were quite a few tasks that needed completing which we never did in the simulator, and also the use of technology especially out of Gatwick is much higher. Rather than needing to use the radio to fetch the weather and clearances, easyJet use a system which utilise's satellite's to transmit data directly to the flight deck, thus lowering some of the workload for the pilots. Also given the longer length of the flights, fuel checks take on a new level of importance. Up to now they have been something we have performed but with no reference to how long we have been airborne. Now there is a comparison made between the planned airborne time and actual time, and how much fuel the aircraft has used to avoid not noticing a fuel leak scenario. 

Turnarounds were also a fairly pressurised time, where the crew had a planned 25 minutes to shut the engines down and prep for the next departure. However up front we definitely have it easy, as the cabin crew need to clear the passengers, tidy up, prep the cabin for the next flight, and get the next set of passengers sat down before the planned off blocks time. Somehow in there they managed to find the time to come and ask us what meals we would like on the way back to Gatwick; in truth this isn't just out of niceness, but they need to plan when they can prep our lunch so it won't interfere with the cabin service.

Following our return flight I had an out and back to Amsterdam, a veritable monster in terms of size and complexity. Coupled with that the flight time from Gatwick is under an hour, so briefings need to be concise to avoid getting behind the aircraft. Normally arrivals from the west like us would be sent to runway 18R which is one of the newer runways at Amsterdam Schiphol; unfortunately this runway is also miles away from the airport, and taxiing to the gate can take upwards of 20 minutes! By complete luck we were sent to runway 18C, which when we vacated made us only a few hundred metres from our stand, so we parked early as schedules are designed to take into account the likely taxi after arrival. 

Later in the week I also sat in on a flight to Bordeaux, which initially was ideal as my first planned flight was to be to Toulouse so the flight times weren't too different. Unfortunately with my cancelled base training I have been removed from that flight, so the plan has changed. Now that the summer schedules are in force it is very difficult for the airline to find a free aeroplane and base training captain, hence me waiting around for a few weeks. Thankfully my roster has changed and I now find myself on a three day base training trip starting next Tuesday. There are 9 of us going, 6 of which i've never met, the two I have being Nik and Dan who I trained with at CTC aviation. I do wish it was a bit sooner as the longer I don't fly the rustier ill get, but we have a refresher sim booked for this week so when I disappear up to Doncaster I should be more than ready to complete my 12 circuits.

My final flight was with a crew doing the short hop to Amsterdam first thing in the morning, upon which the FO was actually a CTC cadet from a course a year ahead of me. Hoan (excuse me if I got the spelling wrong!) seemed to be settling into the line operation really well which gives me confidence that as much hard work as there may be, the hard work certainly pays off!

Given the wonderful weather we've had this week, I took the chance to pop down to the Balcombe Viaduct which is only about 15 minutes from my new home. It's a massive structure that was built in the 1840's, and has clearly stood the test of time because the main London-Brighton railway line still utilises it. I appreciate a brick railway bridge isn't everyone's cup of tea, but a wander in the sunshine was an excuse enough for me to see an engineering marvel. 

Week 81: So close, so very close!!

This week I came so very close to finally completing my base training, but irritatingly our continental friends in French air traffic control decided that a strike was a great way to follow the Easter weekend. For those of you that are unsure, base training is the first occasion a professional pilot flies a big jet and alongside a first solo leaves a lasting imprint on one's memory. The aircraft used is empty of passengers, and the training detail involves flying visual circuits to practice landing.

Unfortunately, forces were against me this week and completing base training was always going to be a challenge. Two students from my course that were supposed to fly the week before had their training detail cancelled because of high winds, and even though they spent three days flying between Cornwall, Northern Scotland and France, they didn't manage to complete their 12 circuits. To further 'improve' the situation, with the French air traffic strike easyJet made the tactical decision to cancel our second days training so that the aircraft was available in terms of contingency planning. This meant that there were now 7 cadets trying to complete 12 circuits in an aircraft we only had for 10 hours. No chance!

This is one of the realities of working for a large airline, the result being I just have to sit on my hands for a few days in the hope that crewing come up with a plan to get us flying. The reality is that our base training will be rescheduled at a convenient time for the company and not before; ultimately transporting passengers around Europe and earning money as a result is how my wages will be paid, and if customers aren't flying the company's not making money. Annoyingly there is a possibility the French will have a further three days of strikes starting on Thursday, so fingers crossed some sort of solution occurs. 

Luckily even though I haven't managed to fly my base training, as part of my introduction to easyJet's way of doing things I am rostered for 8 sectors of supernumerary flights, 4 of which I have tomorrow. These flights are designed to give me the opportunity to watch a crew perform a line flight without being part of the working crew, and I will spectate from the jump-seat which sits at the back of the flight deck. My first one goes to Palma in Mallorca, so I have a decent opportunity to ask questions, then later in the day i'm going over to Amsterdam which promises to be quite challenging given how busy the airport is.

For the moment i'm just waiting on some good news and a change to my schedule, so hopefully by next week things have developed a bit! 

Weeks 79 & 80: Adding a little more orange to my life!

It's been a busy couple of weeks for me, as I have finally joined easyJet and am now under their care. During my first week of induction I was based at the easyJet academy, Luton, where we were introduced to the company. During the first day we were visited by many people from various parts of the business, and given a pretty decent overview of what makes the company tick. As the week wore on we moved onto the more practical activities, including floating about a pool wearing a life jacket as part of our SEP training. 

The group we cadets found ourselves in was quite new in terms of the norm for easyJet, as a group of direct entry Captains were being inducted. When we moved onto security, this was of huge benefit as their experience made the whole session incredibly worthwhile as they were able to give a bit more context to the scenarios. That said, as cadets from an MPL programme there was an odd shift in terms of knowledge when it came to easyJet SOP's (Standard operating procedures), as we were significantly better versed as we had the luxury of 6 months working on them in Southampton.

As much as the crew on the flight deck aren't as customer facing as our colleagues in the cabin, we still need to understand their role as well as have some basic skills in terms of first aid. To this end we had an opportunity to learn CPR using the much loved mannequin, but we also got to use the new on board defibrillator which basically tells you what to do to keep things ticking along! Understanding the cabin crew role also extended to learning how to operate the aircraft doors correctly, something which I hadn't given enough respect to. Put simply if you cock up the order or make a mistake, when you open the door you could activate the slide, and anything that was blocking the door is soon getting shifted!!

The week finished with a day of crew resource management, delivered by two pilots based out of Gatwick. We also had a chance to visit hanger 89 again, and with that our induction week was over.

The weekend following induction Alice and I moved into our flat in Crawley, or at least moved enough stuff to live until we could hire a van for the rest! Unfortunately that didn't extend to a sofa, so we spent four days getting a numb bum sat on the floor. Thankfully when I got another break we moved properly, and our flat is now pretty cosy.

Induction continued this week, but this time at Burgess Hill which is just South of Gatwick. It's the main flight deck training facility, and houses many simulators for a variety of airlines. Frustrating our first two days there were spent in the classroom learning a bit more about line training, as well as how to negotiate a full flight plan. Given each flight plan is about 20 pages long and we could be doing 4 flights a day, thats plenty of paper to get through!

Finally yesterday we were back in the simulator in readiness for base training, but we still had training to get through. This included PRNAV, which put simply is a form of satellite based naviagation. We weren't really learning about the mechanics of the system, more how we will use it on a daily basis and what to do when the system fails. Todays sim session was however a lot more topical, as it was our pre-base sim. Sheldon and I were paired up, and we basically had 4 hours to fly round and round in the circuit at Gatwick to get used to the pattern we will fly tomorrow. Given we both completed our LST a month ago it was also a big opportunity to really blow away the cobwebs and get confident in the aeroplane again. Thankfully there were no major dramas and I feel ready for base training tomorrow, so hopefully there are no snags to stop us going ahead. As long as I continue to fly the way I have been taught and practiced, I should fair OK and will ideally be training in a week. So it's an early night for me, and an exciting day tomorrow. Time to fly the jet, and I finally wear these beauties with pride!!

Week 77 & 78: gearing up for big school!

After the absolute ecstasy of successfully completing my LST, I was given a (well deserved) two weeks off to relax whilst waiting for my induction. some of my collegues found themselves with onbly a few days before their induction, but as I picked Gatwick as my base my start date was the 23rd. And it's a good job, as I found I actually had plenty to get on with. 

For starters Alice and I managed to sort ourselves a flat on the outskirts of Crawley, which was nothing but stressful. Given the state of the property market there are huge amounts of people needing to rent, and a such whenever a nice property becomes available about six million people want to view it that day, and invariably one of them will take it. But finally after lots of frustration and a fair dose of patience we managed to find a place which is only a 10 minute drive to the staff car park at Gatwick. I appreciate that doesn't sound terribly important, but given ill need to then catch a bus from the car park to the crew room (Gatwick is rather large!) anywhere I can cut a few minutes and save myself an even earlier alarm is welcomed!

I then had a nice family party as my Mum's cousin celebrated her 50th birthday. It was great to be able to go, because working shifts for so many years has led to me missing quite a few family gatherings. I suppose that's one of the inevitabilities of working in aviation, that sometimes social plans just don't have a chance as work is the driving force. 

As I had another week off I had a great chance to shoot off to CenterParcs with my family to spend a few days relaxing in the woods. I won't lie I did get a bit excitable at the water park place, getting a touch too giddy playing on all the slides. My sister and niece were there too so I had a great chance to mess about with them (and she made a mess too as she's recently onto solids the little cutie), because now i've got quite a few weeks of work ahead so the opportunities may not come along. Finally Mum treated Alice and I to a relaxing evening in the spa where I experienced about 8 different ways of being tortured by heat and steam, but I definitely left feeling energized!

Finally this week one of the much loved teachers from my secondary school is retiring this week, and I had the chance to pop up and be part of a surprise farewell party. She was mine and my sisters swimming coach so we both spent a lot of time under her care, and it was wonderful to be part of her big goodbye. What made the day even more exciting was that so many of my old coaches and Masters were there so I was able to catch up with some of the people who played a big part in making me the man I am today, 10 years after I left a school I really loved. 

I now find myself in a hotel room on the outskirts of Luton relaxing before my first day of induction tomorrow. Rather than do battle with the m25 and m1 on a Monday morning i've come up a day early, so hopefully the traffic around the airport doesn't let me down! So this single bed is where i'm laying my head for the night, with hopes that I don't roll off the side! As of tomorrow I officially fall under the responsibility of easyJet, and the next chapter of my journey commences. Best bring a change of underwear, absolutely bricking it!