Flying Cheep: Airlines and Professionalism

Flying Cheep: Airlines and Professionalism

          Every pilot has an end goal. Some of the more popular routes remain airlines, corporate, and military. For me the end goal has always been to become an airline pilot. Right now the airline that I am most likely to apply for is Delta. Delta Has a good reputation and is doing very well, and the pilot pay is not bad either. As an airline pilot for Delta it would be my responsibility to carry a large number of passengers from point A to point B. However good Deltas reputation is, and simple the job sounds, there are always concerns.
       
         One of the realities with being in the airlines is how hard it is on relationships. Airline pilots are away from home as much as 18 days out of the month. Airline pilots also miss holidays until they build up seniority. This makes it hard on relationships when the pilot is never with the family on Christmas and is not home half the time. Thankfully, there are ways to keep relationships alive. While most pilots do not get to enjoy holidays during their early years flying, most just choose to calibrate Holidays a week earlier or later. Also helping maintain relationships is technology. Thanks to the internet and smart phones, seeing a loved ones face is never more than a few clicks away. Now family’s are able to see each others faces while they may be on the other side of the world. As important an issue relationships are, professionalism remains one of the top.

professionalism:
“The skill, good judgment, and polite behavior that is expected from a person who is trained to do a job well” - merriam-webster.com

         Everyone has a different way of defining professionalism. When asked to define it I would define it as, doing a job in a way that inspires confidence from the people around you. While there are numerous examples of professionalism, there are a few that fail to meet that definition. Watching a documentary called "Flying Cheep: Professionalism in the Regional Carriers" there were two moments that stuck out. In one instance, a pilot realized he had three 16 hour work days in a row. The pilot was about to call fatigue until his boss told him he would be stuck where he is until the next day. Realizing he would need a hotel and not wanting to spend the night, the pilot continued his flight schedule. It was not professional for the pilot to fly fatigued and endanger the lives of passengers. The other instance was the 2008 Buffalo accident. The caption ended up failing multiple check rides yet still continued to fly, as a caption. This show lack of professionalism from the caption by continuing to fly when he should have made sure he was safe to lead a flight full of passengers. It is easy to see the what makes pilots unprofessional but how would I make sure to maintain professionalism?

         I plan to maintain professionalism by making sure I get proper rest. By using proper blinds that block out the sun and keeping the room cool at night I can achieve a better nights sleep, that and avoiding the hotel bar. I also plan to keep myself current on aviation news by utilizing Propwash. Propwash is an aero-news network that emails people all the current events in aviation. By staying current I can see what is affecting other pilots and keep up with any new regulations that the FAA is trying to pass.

Reference

http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/professionalism
http://www.aero-news.net/