What is flying a 737 really like?

[Helipilot11]

The HUD you guys are using is very similar to what we attach to our goggles when flying at night. I can see how it is very useful for commerical pilots but I know a lot of Blackhawk pilots don't like it. We are able to dim it down to be invisible since we are "required" to wear it. Flying a helicopter it seems as if obstacles come out of no where especially in Afghanistan. Some pilots focus so much on the display and fail scan which can become very dangerous quickly. Like mentioned above about having these tools are awesome but the operator must know when to use them/manage them.

 

[BravoMike]

@Jim Robeson Hands down it would be a P-51 for me. Love the sound of the Merlin engine and in my opinion, one sexy looking airplane. Was fortunate to get a couple rides in this one many years ago. Unfortunately, it crashed in the 90's totally destroying the plane and killing the owner/pilot Vern Peterson. He was a friend of my fathers and Chief Pilot at American Airlines. This picture was taken at Denton Municipal Airport.

 

[BravoMike]

@JC6275 @txav8r Here is a picture I took while doing my annual jump seat qualification ride. Departing Runway 31C at Chicago Midway. Picture taken right after pilot started to rotate and get airborne. The end of the runway is about 1500 feet away. I have a picture coming into MDW on Runway 22L but cannot find it. Gives a good idea of what it looks like going into MDW. I refer to it as landing on a postage stamp. Airline pilots do a heck of job flying in/out of MDW, especially in bad weather conditions and braking action is less than good. I am sure the pucker factor is high at times. Some of you on the forum can probably agree.

 

[txav8r]

Yep, those vintage war birds just tug on aviators for some reason. The sound of some of those engines, omg, well...its close to sex! I love two and two of you have posted them here, so no need to add a pic. Coming from civilian ranks, I went to a professional accredited flying school in Tulsa to get all of my certificates and ratings before starting my career. And just next door to the school was another hanger, that the owner of, had a couple of war birds. He had a P-38 Lightening, and I was present on a few occasions when he flew it. Twin and FAST. Also the P-51 would be an aviators airplane for sure. I don't know the origin of the video @jawsf16 , a buddy of mine sent it to me and others. It was nicely done but the fps edits kind of gunked it up to me too. Also the wide angle lens gave an image of being very low. When your flying an approach like those at 160 knots fully configured to land on a short runway, making turns like that down low, your not looking at the scenery!!! Flying those approaches is fun occasionally, but they use the RNAV RNP 19, which overlays the river visual to 19 when landing south and visibility of at least 1.5 miles! Flying that approach and breaking out in the turn to final at 500'...at night on a wet runway. Don't get mad if you end up at Dulles and have to take a cab! Same for Midway...I diverted to ORD a number of times. Wind/wet/short is not a good recipe at times.

 

[txav8r]

@BravoMike , yeah! If you had a jumpseat opportunity, you could strap on a go pro! But even then, I suspect it falls under the same electronics policy and would be illegal to have any camera on at that time. It doesn't take much to find out who made such videos, and while in reality, it poses no threat if your not actually trying to use it in critical phases, it is still illegal and could cost your career.

 

[Skysurfer2010]

Honestly warbirds do nothing for me. Vintage or recent. For me my dream plane to fly would be a D17 staggerwing. So sexy and powerful with a big ol radial engine!! And yes I know these were used in the military as executive transports, but it wasn't designed specifically for the military.

 

[txav8r]

I love Beech birds. About 1000 hours in Barons, 3500 in King Airs, and would have loved to fly a staggerwing!

 

[Skysurfer2010]

I have about 1,000 in King Airs. I think they're the sexiest turboprop! The 350 flew like it was on rails and was a pleasure to fly.

 

[txav8r]

350 was after my non airline time. I flew the E-90 for the bulk and a B200 for the rest. The B200 was crew concept, the others were single pilot.

 

[justason]

My son has set his sights on being a pilot. I sent him that video, he loved it. We've been touring a few local colleges before we expand outward and start to nail it down.

He took an intro flight a few weeks back and was hooked. I'm thinking once he gets his instructors license he can teach me to start his hours accumulation .

 

[txav8r]

@justason Congrats to your son on his first flight! Be sure we get pics when he loses his shirt tail!!!

 

[Skysurfer2010]

Look into smaller universities and local schools. Some of the big ones give a great education but he'll end up 100k+ in debt. Starting salary when he builds 1,500hrs and is hired by a regional will be between 20 and 30k for his first year and it doesn't go up that much until he moves over to the left seat (captain upgrade).

I went to a local school and came out with very little debt. I've sat next to many young guys upwards of 150k in debt and feel horrible for them. Airlines today want a degree, but they really don't care what university name is stamped at the top for the most part. And by the time he finishes school it'll be so easy to get hired by a regional he'll only need the required hours and a pulse and he'll be hired. From the regionals the mainlines really only care about experience, not where your education is from.

Tell your son to be smart and accrue as little debt as possible. Skip the fancy car. Skip the credit card debt. It's tough financially for a while as pilot. Stay out of of debt and it'll be doable. It's a great occupation and right now is an exciting time to get into the industry.

Also highly consider getting a degree in anything other than aviation. It's a great backup in case it doesn't work out, he gets furloughed, or he decides this career isn't for him. The airlines don't care if the degree isn't aviation related.

 

[justason]

@txav8r we are so new to this we just learned what that means a few weeks back. Average time is 9 hours...school record at local place was 7 i believe....Alec has a goal now

@Skysurfer2010 thank you, i'll fwd that chat off to Alec. He has great research skills and the debt element is well understood.

The schools with their own planes and airport are on the short list. The school leading the pack currently is Averett in Virginia (opinions welcome here). We're going to tour Delta down in Georgia soon I believe.

The catch: he was part of a unique high school cirriculum: 5 years and you graduate with an associates degree. The Gen-ed classes are taught a college level.....thus he is looking at 2 years of college to get his Batchelors...this will also allow him to have a second major like business or airport management etc...and..more time avail to hit the tarmac!!! This 1200 hours thing is harsh tho....he's researching the coast guard now....

Exciting times!!

 

[Skysurfer2010]

Sounds like he's on the right track! Good luck and feel free to ask questions.

 

[jawsf16]

@justason if he wants to build up quality PIC time quickly, send him my way! We can get him hooked up,with an F-35 or F-22 or, if he is really talented and fortunate (good looking, suave, brave and steeley-eyed), the mighty F-16!! Seriously though, for love of flying, there is no better path or service than the AF. If he is shy on the ten year commitment, then look into the ANG or Reserves. PM me if you want more info on any of these options...

 

[justason]

@jawsf16 Matter if fact he is rather suave/brave/tough mofo. I do believe he is worthy of the f16. I actually said to him the other day "i know someone in TX...."

The 10 year clock is a concern to him at first pass...the ANG and reserves have not been pursued to date...this really is coming onto to us fast/furious as a learning curve. I've threatened you/mel with a barage of questions in the past and have yet to follow thru. It is gettin close tho on this exact subject however..

keep this in mind: next time your sittin in a f22: my fingerprints are all over some of the cockpit displays and countermeasure designs via my lockheed days. (Mech design eng).. Woot woot.

 

[Jim Robeson]

I also have a few products on those bad boys!!

 

[BravoMike]

@justason I agree with @jawsf16 on the military route, especially the ANG or Reserves. I have my pilots license, but do not fly for a living. Retired from 22 years in the Texas Air National Guard. If he can get in a unit and get selected for a pilot training slot, he will get some of the best training in the world and get paid for it instead of the other way around. Then he will go to train on the aircraft his unit flies. After all that, he returns to his unit and he will probably have several options depending on the unit and type aircraft they fly. Main thing is he will not the long term commitment to being on active duty for several years, but still have most of the same benefits.

 

[txav8r]

I won't argue that the training in the military is second to none. however if the objective is an airline career, there are windows of opportunity and we are at the beginning of that window. Those at the end of a hiring cycle end up being subjected more to furlow. He is just starting out and spending the minimum amount of time getting to the airlines amounts to millions of dollars, in addition to being subjected to being forced to find an alternative career, sometimes after your married with kids and settled in a community...only to be furloughed for a length of time. I have flown with guys furloughed for 11 years and recently recalled. He could gain the qualifications to be hired in 3 or 4 years if he was proactive about it. Seniority is everything in the airline business, the earlier your hired, the better the career will be. But there are other careers in aviation to consider.

 

[txav8r]

Mel the time lapse footage made me laugh at the artificial feel of speed... Nice video.

@jawsf16 , your comment reminds me of a funny too! I had a boss back in the day when I flew corporate before AA, that used to be a T-38 IP himself. One day while flying along, he related to me that he had a student when he was an IP, that said to him while skimming the clouds, "wow, flying this close to the clouds really gives you the illusion of speed." He said to the student, "it is NO illusion asshole, your doing 500 knots! I still laugh when I think about that.