Originally Posted by
744driver
Below is my opinion only...
Some of the Sim Check Airmen, DEs, and even instructors are company hacks...they feel that they are doing god's work (meaning the Atlas god!!) by sending guys to the line that are "worthy" of flying our 747s. (Are you freaking kidding me?)
They make up their own ****** in checkrides and until recently there was nobody to push back. I'd like to think the new head of our TC is cleaning house of that mentality. It seems to be going in the right direction.
But the disparity between training events and checking events is very real. And therein is the problem if a trainee (even highly experienced line pilots) cannot handle the curve balls that will surely be hurled at him/her in the 747 program.
Good luck to those making their way through the 747 program...it is NOT easy, and made complicated by the multiple instructor changes, and the resultant differences or gaps in the program.
It's been three years since I've been through the 747 type ride. When I went through it was definitely a self study program. There were times at night I went to bed thinking there's no way to know everything they wanted me to know. I learned others felt the same way. My classmates were ALL awesome and we helped each other get throught it. I guess you could say our motto was work hard, play hard. We definitely succeeded at both. We bonded and still keep in touch no matter where some have moved on to.
I expected the same thing on my first PC. I studied all my type ride notes and re-read FCOM vol 1 and vol 2. However I was surprised to find out I had waaaaaay over prepared. PC#2 was much of the same. I re-read Vol 1 since it was a new release and was still over prepared. PC#3 was the same again. I found that the check airmen I had were big picture and good instructors. I learned quite a bit and felt it was a fair assessment. With each PC I wrote down what I learned and what I screwed up. I review that before the next one and it usually goes well. Maybe I was just lucky, but all 3 of my PCs have been fair, balanced, and educational. Of course there's the typical bit of nervousness as with any PC, but I can say each check airman was great.
I am disappointed the initial type ride instruction hasn't progressed to a big picture viewpoint. Realistically the only thing this plane has to do is takeoff and land. It's not cosmic. Follow the FCOM VOL 1 and QRC if needed. Realistically the most difficult part of a typical day is deciding where to get dinner.