[quote=xjsf340fo;349723]
Originally Posted by
tflyer70
Take your time...HAVE FUN...be respectful of all the work groups (FA's, ground support, gate agents, etc...)
I finished IOE yesterday. IMHO the order of difficulty for an FO IOE is:
#1. Situational awareness at DTW/dealing with the taxi instructions. The rapid fire instructions seem to not quite match up to what you expect, and it's very unnerving. A great LCA -- like Joe McCauley is -- understands and is ready to take up the slack. Between the first and second segments of my IOE, I learned the DTW taxi diagram from memory and most of the frequencies. I cannot recommend enough that you spend some of your pre-IOE free time to do the same for your base -- but you'll still struggle.
#2. Visual approaches. Sim tng is all about flying instrument approaches to mininums, but my IOE included only ONE ILS, and a whole bunch of visual approaches. Sadly, there is very, very little you can do to get ready to perform good visual approaches. I can only recommend absorbing every word your LCA tells you about how to configure, asking every possible question that occurs to you, and trying to mimic the way he flies an approach in every detail.
The last thing I can say is, RELAX. I am not a natural relaxer, instead constantly working on not making the same mistake twice. Understand and accept the fact that you will make the same mistakes over and over again, and don't let it get to you. If you thought training was drinking from a firehose, then IOE is drinking from two firehoses at the same time -- while flying an airplane.
One last caution, never, ever leave the plane without carrying your cellphone, and have your LCA's cell number stored.
All of that is really great advice. I completed IOE on the -200 last week and I'm on reserve at least for the month of April. Three other guys from my 10/22 class are also on reserve for April until they get another 3-4 lines built for where we're at seniority wise. That should probably clue in the others that are waiting what they can expect after IOE....so probably at least a month of reserve.
My IOE lasted about 30-40 hours over the course of a 4-day, and three 2-day trips. I had all the same challenges as "XJSF340fo" and "RJ85FO" already mentioned.
On the visual approaches, I've had two specific challenges that I'm still not perfect on, but it's coming along....ATC frequently vectors us inside the FAF and when the flight director is still configured at the altitude you'd normally be at prior to the FAF, it either captures at the higher glide path or not at all....I just disconnect the AP and hand-fly it in at that point, but I've had to learn to dial in a lower altitude on the FD quicker and VS it down so it will re-capture the correct the glide path. Hand-flying is great, but they want the FD configured properly for the approach regardless. It's tough because there is very little time to soak that process in and do what needs to be done. It takes several landings/approaches like this to start "getting it". They DO NOT teach you that in SIM at all (if only once and you won't remember it).
The other challenge is getting away from that "light aircraft" profile on the flare. In a light aircraft, you basically flare the aircraft until the airspeed bleeds down toward stall and the aircraft settles onto the runway. In the -200, I've learned that the wings "like" airspeed and you have to just plant that sucker on the runway. I've had some greaser landings that I walked away feeling really proud of, which is fine when there is no wind. However, that doesn't transition well anytime there is a strong crosswind or gusting winds of any kind. My advice during windy conditions...keep that speed up above the "box" and push it down.
I'm still getting used to the radios and will (on occasion) completely blow a taxi or approach clearance. My brain can remember 3-4 things, but sometimes ATC just spits something out that melts my brain. It's rather funny....I just stopped once and said, "Uh, what the heck did you just say?" We were coming out of the 30R deice pad, conducting a X-bleed start, and what I was expecting ATC to say was not what was said. Now, thinking about it, it wasn't that the instructions were too difficult to understand, it was just not what I expected. It's embarrassing, but you can't beat yourself up about it too much.
I had a couple really interesting experiences too....lots of MEL'd APUs and a Zero flap landing on my second day (170kts) with the fire trucks following us down the runway. My captain was sitting there, probably thinking about all the terrible things that could happen...and I'm like, "Cool! Just like SIM! I'm invincible!"
I flew with all nice captains. Yeah, some had "quirks", but they were all good teachers and I appreciated the effort they took with me. It's stressful for us, but think about how they must feel too. A lot of these IOE instructors are getting worked hard since all this training began and it must be tough to break in one pilot after another. Yeah, I know, it's their job, but they are humans too. One of my IOE classmates on the -200 also advised that you keep your wits about you. I mean, it's hard because you're soaking in all the newness, but he experienced an IOE instructor making an incorrect turn on a departure involving "mountains". The advice is to "speak up" if you see/hear something that's not right and don't just sit there expecting your IOE instructor to know it all.
Anyways, that's my ramblings....good luck to those of you still coming in. It's an unbelievable experience.