Mjm8710

Just looking for pointers, specific areas of study that are hit hard in training, how the process has been lately for the people going through, and what you would have done differently to prepare.

Hopefully upgrading in the next few months and am trying to hit the books hard ahead of time. I feel 80-90% ready to go, but figured I’d ask anyways. Thanks in advance. Cheers

Lostboys97

The ability to have decision making skills can not be studied.
Never rush.
And be able to throw some common sense into the mix.

sargeanb

I second that about the never rushing. The time will come during/after you upgrade when you have time pressure coming from several different directions; take your time and do it right. That being said, most of my upgrade oral was the captain-specific stuff. They know that you know how to fly and know the systems. They want to see knowledge of ops specs, legalities, and performance (my CKA went line by line through the release and asked me about a lot of it), how to write up a mtx item (different types, and which requires you to do what,) wx, alternates, and diversion procedures, and other decision-making type items.

knewyork

The fact that you’re on here asking questions about the topic is a great sign. The problem with recent rpa upgrades is a lack of care. People have been treating this as a seniority privilege. It is far from that. The past few classes have shown that. You need to demonstrate situational awareness and command authority. You need to always be thinking ahead and use your resources appropriately.

I think there’s a problem we’ve had here because our upgrade was incredibly long (7 years) and in a matter of 3 years it’s gone down to 2.5 years, essentially. I’ve flown with plenty of senior folks who were very surprised upgrade time was that low. They almost couldn’t believe it which probably means they haven’t been giving advice and mentoring FOs. Once I mentioned I was close to upgrade, then they gave advice. It was very helpful.

Things you can do now as an FO is get some advice from every captain you fly with. You will pick up a lot of info. Also, have you been an FO or a captain in training? When given a hold, do you sit back and think about how you’re gonna be late or do you come up with a plan in your head and calculate fuel?

At some point during upgrade you realize the shear weight of the left seat. How you are the final safety net. After you, there are no more safety nets. There’s a long chain of factors that lead to the outcome of a flight and you are the last link. Part of upgrade is also dealing with that fact and being ok with it. It’s stressful but you have to manage the pressure.

TheWeatherman

Decision making is the huge thing and the ability to follow the QRH and understand the intentions when going through the flow throughs. Never have hard set personal rules that you always follow because every situation is different. For example, somebody recently failed upgrade because she said that she always declares an emergency in a certain situation even through he QRH did not call for it. She had a few other issues, but it was that attitude on why she failed upgrade.