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Old 07-10-2018, 07:12 PM
  #9  
Knobcrk1
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Joined APC: Jul 2017
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Originally Posted by NobodyLikesMe View Post
If you are really interested in working for a 121 airline you need to be equipped with the ability to fly airline flights. In my experience, the guys that couldn't make it through the program weren't even failing on callouts, they were failing because they couldn't fly instruments. Don't get me wrong, there are a multitude of reasons that guys are busting out of training. All of them can be summated by saying they just aren't ready for this type of flying. I've seen guys not make it from not being able to program the FMC. I've also seen guys not be able to maintain straight and level +/- 700ft. The biggest recurring issue I've seen amongst the Rotor guys that don't make it is a complete lack of instrument skills and knowledge coupled with a very poor understanding of the autopilot and how to interface with it to make the airplane do what you want. When you fly this jet or any jet these days, it is absolutely critical you understand the autopilot. When you took your checkrides in the past, you were evaluated on your ability to control the airplane and maintain that control within a specific set of parameters set forth by some regulatory agency. In the civilian side of things that's the Practical Test Standards. When you fly this jet, you're going to be graded on the same thing, but there's a whole new facet to flying it: Automation. 90% of the guys that washout (from my experience) failed on this. You're going to have to fly this bird in very tight ATP standards with automation, so if you have no idea what each and every button does and how to verify with the airplane on the Flight Mode Annunciator what it's trying to do, you will not make it. I guarantee you. The Rotor guys I saw come through had very little automation experience and by the time I got to see them, they had already made it through systems and mostly through Systems Integration Training. Needless to say, if you make it to SIM with very little knowledge of how to use the autopilot, you won't do well.


The other big problem I saw was instrument skills. If you don't know how to identify a fix on an approach or know where you are without seeing outside, you will not make it. I saw a rotor guy who didn't know what DME was. If you don't know what DME is, you really aren't equipped for airline flying.


I tell guys this. The 121 training environment is a bring your own tools environment. What I mean by that, is that the programs at most regionals are not AQP and therefor there's no "gate" style training to pass before moving on (e.g. you don't do procedures stuff and then take a small checkride on that before moving onto emergencies). You have to bring all the tools required to "build" your repertoire of airline flying skills. You will not have time and you will not be taught in any portion of the training what a VOR, NDB, DME, ILS, LDA, Standard Instrument Departure (SID), Standard Terminal Arrival Route (STAR), etc is. You will be expected to show up with all of this knowledge. Within the first couple of GFS and SIMS you'll be going through how to shoot an approach in this plane. If you're shooting your first ILS in 2+ years and are a little fuzzy on DME, you're way behind.


I'm not trying to belittle you or in any way say you are not a knowledgeable fella, but to answer your questions, this is my experience with rotor to wing guys coming into training.

My recommendation is that if you are serious about coming to the 121 airline world, make sure that you read up on instrument stuff. Dig in to the Instrument Pilot Handbook and maybe even go take a couple of IFR flights even if it's in a FRASCA. The last thing you'll want to have to gather while you're trying to figure out what the autopilot is doing is your situational awareness (where you are, etc)

Hopefully, other guys will fill in here and correct me if need be. This is all just my experience.


PM me if you have any questions or want more detail about training.

Exactly, they're not ready for the type of flying. It's amazing how they really have no idea what's expected. Some of the guys I saw made me question how they had a paying flying job before this. I think as airline pilots we get a bad rap in the industry as lazy and we don't do anything but monitor the computers but you really have to know what you're doing to be able to do that! If you come in with no experience you at least have to be a good pilot that knows your stuff.
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