My first flight as a regional guy was back in 2000. It was a repo pt91 flight from GJT to DRO in a DHC-8. I was extremely nervous. I knew my stuff, but the pressure to do well and remember this flight after years of education, training, instructing & interviewing was a little overwhelming. To start off, I didn't know where to go: mx hanger...the gate...where the f-- is ops? After I found my OE CA, we were on our way. It was his leg. I stumbled with my callouts, but we made it airborne on a beautiful Colorado day. A very rewarding aspect of the flight is that the flight crossed directly over my childhood/teenage backyard in the SW San Juan range. I had spent all my free time with family and friends in those mountains hiking, jeeping, skiing and snowmobiling.
When we were finally approaching DRO...captain's leg...he decided to give me a lesson on how capable this DHC-8 really was. We were on a long final to rw20. He told me to tell him when I thought we were too high (altitude fellas
) to make the runway. Well, when we got to the point that I couldn't see the end of the runway off the nose (I think were roughly 4000' AGL) I said there was no way we can make it. We were slow at that point, and he called for props, flaps, flaps, gear, flaps (35). Next I found my myself decelerating (in what seemed to be at the time) a vertical dive...then we stabilized at 1000', touched down
softly at the 1000' markers, and then came to a stop within...oh...500'.
I've loved the Dash since that day...and had a great OE experience.
...and that was my first airline pilot experience.
ZP